Former EWA Employee's Sentence Reduced for Forging Disconnection Notices

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com   

The High Court of Appeal has reduced the sentence of a former Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) employee from one year to three months in prison. The employee was found guilty of forging electricity disconnection notices to force a tenant to pay overdue rent.

The victim had reported that he was renting land from the defendant for a monthly rent of 240 Bahraini dinars. The defendant had sent him fake electricity and water disconnection notices via WhatsApp, claiming they were from the EWA. These notices warned of imminent disconnection of services.

An investigation by the EWA revealed that the notices were indeed forged. The defendant, who had exploited his position as an EWA employee, had not issued the notices on the date mentioned and they were not authorised by the customer services department.

The defendant's lawyer argued that his client had been working in the accounts department for 35 years and had no prior criminal record or complaints against him. He claimed that the defendant had obtained a court order to terminate the lease agreement and remove the tenant from the property due to serious violations, including illegal water and electricity connections. The lawyer alleged that the tenant had illegally connected to the electricity grid before installing a meter and had filed a criminal complaint against the defendant, leading to the false charges.

The Public Prosecution had charged the defendant with forgery of official documents, specifically the electricity disconnection notices, by falsely claiming they were issued by the EWA. The defendant was found guilty of issuing unauthorised disconnection notices to pressure the victim into paying rent.