The "Belinia" Court in the Sohag Governorate of Egypt sentenced a travel broker to four years in prison with hard labor for scamming thousands of impoverished individuals in Kuwait. The court also ordered him to financially compensate the victims. The judgments were issued in cases No. 11020 and 11018, with charges including "human trafficking," fraud, and embezzlement of money from those wishing to travel to Kuwait, according to the Kuwaiti newspaper "Al-Qabas."
Attorney Atef Al-Hamami, representing the victims, praised the verdict, describing it as a triumph for many workers and an elevation of justice, given that the criminal managed to defraud thousands of poor people over the years. He unlawfully seized their money, causing a significant crisis among families and communities in Sohag. Al-Hamami stated that the four-year prison sentence is merely the beginning, as dozens of cases against the accused are still pending, and all indications suggest he will face many more years of imprisonment along with compensation for all victims, similar to this ruling.
Investigations revealed that the accused specialized in brokering residency permits and bringing workers to fake companies. He fled Kuwait after the COVID-19 crisis and was apprehended in his home country following reports from hundreds of workers among his victims.
According to security information, the accused is said to possess bank assets exceeding 400 million Egyptian pounds from the residency trade, in addition to real estate in various Egyptian regions. He had worked for years with phantom companies, whose owners were convicted in cases following the COVID-19 crisis.
Residing in Jahra, the accused defrauded hundreds of workers, leaving them stranded. He charged 1,500 Kuwaiti Dinars for each visa, taking 30% of the proceeds while 70% went to the owners of the fake companies that abandoned the workers upon their arrival in Kuwait.
Details of the case began with the arrest of the accused in his villa in "Belinia" last August. After questioning by the Anti-Money Laundering Unit, he was referred to the prosecution, which ordered his detention for four days pending investigations, later extending his detention by 15 days until the investigations could be completed.
Sources revealed that investigations by the Anti-Money Laundering Unit, the prosecution, and national security in recent months uncovered a human trafficking case. Following security investigations and numerous reports, many suspicions arose about the accused, including the substantial growth of his bank balances and the assets he owns, as well as emerging fraud and deceit cases against him.
The sources indicated that the accused was charged with "unlawful gains," with findings suggesting that his assets stem from Kuwait, exceeding millions of pounds, in addition to other properties such as houses and lands. The consistent pattern of reports pointed to suspicions of human trafficking, fraud, and unlawful activities, with investigations into these suspicions ongoing.
The security sources noted that since his arrest, multiple reports and complaints against him have surfaced, all related to human trafficking, fraud, selling fake visas to Kuwait, and forming partnerships with Kuwaitis that own fake companies, based on investigations and intelligence obtained by Egyptian authorities from their Kuwaiti counterparts, along with testimonies from the victims.
