Fish stall shut by MOCI

KUWAIT CITY, Sep 16: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has intensified inspection campaigns across all six governorates in a bid to combat fraud, enforce regulations, and safeguard consumer rights.

According to sources, the latest field operations resulted in the closure of seven shops in Ahmadi Governorate, including three fish stalls accused of altering the declared country of origin of their products and a fruit and vegetable outlet. Additionally, two contracting companies in the governorate were shut down after failing to comply with contractual obligations to consumers.

In Farwaniya Governorate, inspection teams confiscated 381 counterfeit goods during raids on several retail outlets. The seizures highlight the ministry’s ongoing efforts to tackle the sale of fake products and protect consumers from fraudulent practices.

Faisal Al-Ansari, Director of the Commercial Control Department, stressed that inspection teams will adopt a zero-tolerance approach to violations. “Inspection teams will not be lenient in dealing with complaints and violations received, and will take legal action, including shutting down offending establishments,” he said.

Al-Ansari underscored the ministry’s commitment to protecting consumers by clamping down on practices such as the misrepresentation of country of origin, the sale of expired goods, manipulation of prices, and the distribution of counterfeit products.

He added that the ministry will continue its field campaigns to monitor commercial activities, regulate prices, prevent artificial price hikes, and ensure the quality and authenticity of products offered in the market.

KUWAIT CITY, Sept 16: The Misdemeanor Court acquitted a Kuwaiti businesswoman of renting residential units to bachelors in Sabah Al-Ahmad Coastal Area, a private residential area. This was based on the provisions of Decree-Law No. 125/1992 prohibiting non-family housing. The case is based on the report of a Kuwait Municipality inspector in Ahmadi Governorate, responding to complaints on the supposed presence of bachelors in several residential plots, including the plot owned by the defendant. The inspector indicated that he issued eviction notices to the property owners, but he did not receive any response. He then filed a report against the businesswoman, including the property details and the type of violation. Attorney Enaam Haidar, who appeared in court on behalf of the businesswoman, argued that the accusation is false and groundless.

She asserted that the documents have no conclusive evidence proving that her client rented the property to bachelors. She indicated that the incident was fabricated and based on a complaint that was not supported by legal arguments or material evidence. She added that the Decree-Law explicitly states in its first article that any lease contract proven to have violated the law is void, making legal liability dependent on a valid and enforceable lease contract, which is not present in the case. The court accepted the arguments of Haider, finding the accusation “shaky and baseless,” and that the case documents lack conclusive evidence of the defendant’s alleged violation. Consequently, the businesswoman was acquitted of all the charges against her. Meanwhile, the Criminal Court acquitted a citizen of forging bank documents and laundering money estimated at KD54,000.

The court made its decision based on the arguments of Attorney Hussein Al-Asfour, lawyer of the accused, who asserted that the investigations conducted by the Criminal Investigations Department at the Interior Ministry are invalid due to lack of seriousness and the unreasonable nature of the incident, in addition to the absence of the elements of the two crimes attributed to his client. The Public Prosecution charged the defendant and other unidentified individuals with forming an organized criminal group and laundering money estimated at KD 54,000, which they allegedly obtained through forgery and the statement of the victim’s account at a local bank. The court charged the defendants with complicity in forging private documents and KNET company records, as well as using the victim’s bank card data in illegal online transfers. Also, the Court of Cassation upheld the ruling of the Court of Appeals, which sentenced a Ministry of Interior police officer with the rank of sergeant to five years in prison with hard labor and fined him KD1,000 for bribery. He was convicted of accepting bribe and fabricating a liquor trafficking case against a number of Asians with the intent of deporting them. It was concluded that the defendant accepted a bribe of KD500 from a secret source in exchange for arresting another secret source and framing him for liquor trafficking. However, the detectives set up an entrapment, during which they caught the police officer red-handed while receiving the money.

By Jaber Al-Hamoud
Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff

Firefighters battle the fire at the Al-Abdali business district under control.

KUWAIT CITY, Sept 16: Firefighting teams from Al-Abdali, Al-Subiya, Al-Soor, and support centers successfully brought a fire under control on Monday evening after it broke out at several commercial shops and a warehouse in the Al-Abdali area.

Firefighting units promptly responded to the scene and initiated immediate firefighting operations, successfully containing the blaze before it spread further.

Authorities confirmed that no injuries were reported as a result of the incident.