Kuwait’s Sheikh Ahmad Al Fahad convicted of forgery in Geneva trial

Geneva: A Swiss criminal court convicted Kuwait's Sheikh Ahmad Al Fahad, a power broker in international sports, of forgery on Friday in a trial over whether he used a bogus coup plot to gain advantage over political rivals.

The sheikh had denied all the charges in the case. He said he would appeal against the conviction.

“I believe I am innocent,” he told reporters after the court handed him a 30-month sentence, half of which is to be served in jail. He said he was “100 percent” sure he would return for the appeal.

The criminal fraud case was launched in Switzerland as one of the sheikh’s co-defendants was, at the time of the alleged coup plot, a Geneva-based lawyer who acted for him.

Prosecutors alleged that Sheikh Ahmad knew that the videos, which he passed on to Kuwaiti authorities, were fakes.