Unrelated couple arrested in Riyadh

Riyadh : The police, along with members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (Haia), arrested an unrelated couple who were traveling in a car.

Riyadh police spokesman, Col. Fawaz Al-Maiman, explained that the couple attracted the attention of the police since the woman was not properly dressed according to the local regulations. She was not wearing an abaya and her face was overly made-up which attracted the attention of passersby.

The couple was in a Toyota jeep in the Muousa bin Nasser district.

The man, who is in his 30s, is a Syrian expatriate and he alleged that the girl was his wife.

Al-Maiman said the man could not prove that he was married to the woman and was unable to present documentation to prove his marriage.

The case has been referred to the Bureau of Investigations and Public Prosecution for necessary action, according to Al-Maiman.

According to local law, an unrelated man and woman must not be together. Such behavior can be prosecuted and if those guilty are expatriates, they can be deported.
A report issued by the Ministry of Justice said that offenses involving mixing without a male guardian account for the largest share of the 3,582 cases filed against female defendants in 2013.

More than 450 assault and battery charges followed the 593 cases of women being found in seclusion with unrelated men.

The report highlighted the cultural specifications since many defendants were reported for bad behavior to parents, helping women escape from their homes, harboring married women without the consent of their husbands, practicing black magic and uttering profanities.

Other cases included 333 counts of indecent conduct, 325 cases of prostitution and 247 cases of theft. There were a similar number of cases involving drug and alcohol possession.

There were also 42 murder cases, 30 cases of marital abuse, 27 cases of intrusion, 25 cases involving malicious intent, 16 cases of money laundering, 14 cases of fraud and 12 cases of betrayal.