Grandmother's Funds Stolen: University Student Sentenced to Six Months in Prison

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

A Bahraini university student has been sentenced to six months in prison for robbing his grandmother, in addition to a previous six-month sentence for defrauding his aunts of over BD 24,000. The student is accused of exploiting his grandmother by allegedly stealing BD 4,000 through unauthorised transfers using the BenefitPay mobile banking application, all while living with her.

His earlier conviction stemmed from a series of fraudulent transactions between 2020 and 2023, where he used his aunts' electronic signatures and PINs to access their BenefitPay accounts and systematically transferred significant sums to his own account. The court recognised the severity of his actions and the financial hardship inflicted on his victims, ordering an interim compensation of BD 450 to the aunts while further legal proceedings were pending.

The new charges relate to similar allegations against his grandmother. The Public Prosecution asserts that the student illicitly accessed her BenefitPay account, transferring BD 4,000 to his personal account, which left her financially vulnerable. The prosecution's case is supported by bank statements that document the unauthorised transfers, providing strong evidence of the fraudulent activity.

The theft was discovered by the victim's son, who noticed a significant depletion in his mother's bank account during a routine check. Upon further investigation, the full extent of the discrepancies was revealed. Initially, the student admitted to withdrawing only BD 800, but a thorough police investigation uncovered the total theft of BD 4,000.

The situation is further aggravated by testimony from the victim's son, who stated that the student had previously used similar tactics to defraud his sisters, illustrating a troubling pattern of predatory behaviour. One of the aunts corroborated this, confirming the student's previous actions against her and her sister, which led them to file a police report.

Investigations conducted across two different banks revealed further evidence of the student's fraudulent activities during the same period, reinforcing the prosecution's case and painting a clear picture of calculated financial exploitation.