KUWAIT CITY, Jul 12: The Public Prosecution addressed to the National Assembly, regarding the lifting of immunity from the two member of parliament, Saadoun Hammad and Salah Khurshid, in the case of human trafficking in which the Bangladeshi MP is accused.

The latter made confessions during investigation of providing financial sums to Hammad and Khurshid in exchange to facilitate transactions to recruit workers from Bangladesh by obtaining exceptions from the relevant government ministries.

According to the Public Prosecution’s memorandum Muhammad Shahid Islam (Bangladeshi) who is an Bangladeshi MP, revealed that he gave MP Saadoun Hammad about 200,000 dinars, including 50,000 dinars in his residence in the South Surra region, and 150,000 dinars by cheques through a Syrian national mediator who is the deputy manager of a company, in order to facilitate his transactions and complete his commercial procedures in Kuwait.

While for MP Salah Khorshid he gave financial amounts of 370,000 dinars in cash at his residence in installments, in exchange for bringing in Bangladeshi workers.

Through secret investigations it was indicated it was an organized gang that trafficked people with the intention of material gain consisting of both a Kuwaiti person (a first accused) and Muhammad Shahid Islam ( A second defendant) using a company owned by the first defendant, to recruit and bring in workers from the state of Bangladesh by fraud in order to obtain cash from each of them ranging between 2500 and 2700 dinars in exchange for employment contracts in the State of Kuwait to work for the company.

Although the company was closed due to legal violations the workers arrived in Kuwait and they discovered that the contracts were fake and they were forcibly employed in another company owned by the second defendant.

They were forced to work against their will for long working hours in inhuman working conditions without paying their wages or providing adequate housing according to what was stipulated.

He attacked those who objected and threatened them to register false absconding case against them. Some workers in the two companies were used as witness where all of them decided the validity of what was included in the investigations. They added that they were brought in through a travel agency owned by the second accused Muhammad Shahid Islam in the Republic of Bangladesh.

The prosecution added that on 13th June the residence of the second suspect was searched along with the company owned by him which was in partnership with another which resulted in finding of bank documents and cheques issued in the names of people, some of them working in as officials in government ministries.

During investigations it was confirmed that the accused Muhammad Shahid Islam has money collected in fraudulent ways, intentionally hiding some of its sources which he collected from his victims from human trafficking crimes, he gave bribes to government employees to facilitate his transactions in the official authorities.

By questioning the accused Muhammad Shahid Islam, he initiated the investigation at the beginning by denying all the charges levied against him, and denied his link to the incident which was under investigation.

After searching his residence and company owned by him and others he admitted during investigation based on the documents that he is the actual manager of the company and that the money shown in the form of the cheques he paid to some employees in government agencies/ministries which was with the intention of speeding up the procedures that are not in violation of the law. He also deals with the travel office located in his home country in Bangladesh to bring workers in exchange for cash which they pay and these sums are directed immediately to charity which are not deposited in his bank accounts. He is not responsible for all the facts related to the employment of workers such as collecting of daily sums from them during work, as well as not responsible for the workers housing as this responsibility lies with the company’s supervisors the labor housing.

On the 16th of June during supplementary investigations which included the admission of the accused Muhammad Shahid Islam that he paid money to a number of people to facilitate his transactions in the state, and they are:

1- Member of the National Assembly Saadoun Hammad Al-Otaibi, as he gave him sums of money 50,000 dinars in cash in his residence in the South Surra area, in order to facilitate his transactions and complete his commercial procedures in the country.

2- A Syrian national, who is a deputy general manager of a company, with consent of Muhammad Shahid Islam he brought Bangladeshi labor where MP Saadoun Hammad Al-Otaibi accepted number of cheques given by the Syrian for approving these transactions with a financial amount of 150,000 dinars, knowing that the last one was a former companion, and he left the country on the date of 2017.

3- Member of the National Assembly, Salah Abdulredha Khurshid, was given financial sums of 370,000 dinars in cash in his residence in installments, in exchange for bringing in Bangladeshi workers, and excluding him to obtain these approvals, and also gave other people some of them to facilitate procedures in the official authorities, and others as loans and aid.(Al Rai)