Bahrain court fines defendant guilty of faking trademark certificate

TDT | Manama                                                        

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

The High Criminal Court has convicted a person in Bahrain for forging a trademark registration certificate and falsely claiming it was issued by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MOIC).

The defendant gave a fake certificate to a business owner who wanted to register a trademark for importing electronic devices. The victim paid the defendant BD900 for the counterfeit certificate. The defendant is already serving a six-month prison sentence for another case involving a breach of trust.

The victim filed a complaint stating that he had an agreement with the defendant to obtain a trademark registration certificate from the MOIC for importing electronic devices. Subsequently, the defendant delivered the requested certificate to the victim.

However, upon reviewing the ministry’s official website, it was discovered that the certificate had no record or information, confirming its falsification. This revelation came despite the victim having paid the agreed-upon amount of BD900.

Confession

The detained defendant confessed to the charges and admitted to forging the certificate using his personal computer by manipulating an authentic template obtained from the MOIC. He altered the information on the certificate and included the victim’s details before delivering it to him.

The defendant acknowledged his involvement in the incident. The Public Prosecution charged the defendant with committing forgery in the electronic registry, specifically the trademark registration certificate, which falsely attributed its issuance to the MOIC. The forged certificate resembled legitimate documents issued by the ministry, which are used as official evidence of trademark registration.