Kuwait jails three for 10 years over embezzlement of minors’ funds in London property deal

Dubai: A Kuwaiti appeals court has sentenced three citizens to 10 years in prison each, fined them a total of KD9 million and ordered them to repay KD4.5 million in a case involving funds linked to Kuwait's Public Authority for Minors Affairs and a property deal in London.

The court also ordered the dismissal from public office of any defendants who were government employees, overturning an earlier acquittal by the Criminal Court.

The case centred on a 2017 transaction involving the purchase of land in London through a company in which the Public Authority for Minors Affairs held a stake.

According to expert reports cited in the case, the convicts established private companies that were used to channel funds abroad and acquire the London property, creating conflicts of interest that were not properly disclosed.

The reports found that the company selling the property did not own it when the contract was signed, while the company intended to acquire the land had not yet been formally established when preliminary agreements were concluded.

Documents were also submitted to the company's board indicating that the property had been formally registered, but subsequent investigations found that the purported registration was not supported by British property records.

The Court of Appeal reconsidered the case on the basis of technical reports detailing the financial damage and conflicts of interest before issuing the convictions.