KUWAIT CITY, June 25: The Ministerial Court postponed the trial of former Defense Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al- Fahad until Sept 9 to listen to the defense witnesses. It also upheld the decision of the Investigation Committee to dismiss the complaint filed against Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad, accusing him of interfering in the National Assembly elections. The committee previously dismissed the complaint filed by the Financial Investigation Unit, which accused Sheikh Ahmad Al- Fahad of interfering in the legislative elections by disbursing money.
During its session on Tuesday, the court listened to the testimonies of the detective in charge of the investigations, as well as two Ministry of Defense employees. This is part of the ongoing hearing of evidence and testimonies that may shed light on the facts of the complaint and the suspicions raised about the mechanism for disbursing the disputed sum.
According to the Ministry of Defense, the incidents are related to the suspected illegal disbursements of funds during Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad’s tenure as minister. This prompted the filing of the case at the Ministerial Court. The court questioned Sheikh Ahmad Al- Fahad about the charges that include embezzling KD400,000 of public funds; illegally acquiring KD215,000; purchasing six vehicles using money taken from the ministry’s account; and submitting two declarations of liability to the Kuwait Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) without disclosing the ownership of the vehicles.
By Jaber Al-Hamoud
Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff
