KUWAIT CITY, Mar 6: Colonel Abdul Aziz Al-Amiri, Director of the Search and Follow-up Department at the General Administration of Nationality and Travel Documents in Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior, revealed a significant case of citizenship fraud during an interview with Kuwait TV. He stated that an individual had fraudulently obtained Kuwaiti citizenship under Article 1 in 2019, based on a court ruling that falsely recognized him as the relative of a Kuwaiti citizen. However, DNA testing later proved that no such familial relationship existed, confirming that the individual was not a descendant of the Kuwaiti citizen in question.

Sources disclosed that the case stems from a complex situation involving a Kuwaiti citizen who had married an Iraqi woman. The woman reportedly persuaded her husband to register her brother as his son in the citizenship records. The Kuwaiti citizen obtained a birth certificate for the individual in preparation for adding him to the citizenship file, but the process was never completed due to various complications.

Following the death of the Kuwaiti citizen, the individual in question filed a lawsuit to be included in the inheritance records as an heir, relying on the birth certificate he held. The court ruled in his favor, and based on this ruling, he was able to prove his lineage and obtain official identification documents, ultimately securing Kuwaiti citizenship in 2019.

However, the Nationality Investigations Department later received information prompting further scrutiny of the case. Authorities conducted genetic fingerprint testing between the individual and his alleged relatives, which conclusively proved that he was, in fact, Iraqi and the brother of the individuals involved. The scientific evidence left no room for doubt, exposing the fraud. Further investigation revealed that in 1977, the individual had fathered a son and registered him under the same mother’s file, presenting the child as his brother. This manipulation effectively altered the familial relationships, with the mother being listed as an aunt rather than the wife of the father. The case highlights the rigorous efforts of Kuwaiti authorities to combat citizenship fraud and uphold the integrity of the nation’s legal and administrative systems. Investigations into the matter are ongoing.