Man gets 5 years for illegal fundraising

Manama : A Bahraini man received a five-year imprisonment sentence yesterday for illegal fundraising.

The accused used the amounts raised in Bahrain to finance two TV channels that air sectarian content from Iraq and the UK.

This was revealed yesterday in the High Criminal Court, which sentenced the man to five years of imprisonment and to pay a fine of BD5,000.

The accused was charged with illegal fundraising, money laundry and insulting a sect and a person considered an idol for it.

Court files showed that the accused raised funds here to support Fadak and Sawt Al Itra TV channels. The channels were founded by infamous Kuwaiti cleric Yasser Al Habib who got his citizenship revoked by the Kuwaiti authorities in the mid-2000s for insulting the Sunni sect and is currently seeking asylum in London.

The Public Prosecution had ordered to refer the defendant to the court after interrogating him. It was revealed in the trial that the man had raised the funds to finance a show that insults the companions of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) and was planned to be aired on both channels.

Stamps, receipts and other evidences were found in the defendant’s possession, in addition to other electronic devices which he confessed that he used to communicate with both channels and spread the abusive and sectarian content.

Investigations also showed that the defendant had used several means to hide the source of the money he had collected and to send abroad anonymously.