Ten jailed for role in fatal 2006 Makkah building collapse

Makkah: A criminal court here has jailed 10 people found responsible for the collapse of a hotel in which 76 Haj pilgrims were killed, for between one and three months, and imposed fines of between 10,000 riyals (Dh9,800) and 90,000 riyals (Dh88,400), local media reported.

Two UAE nationals were among the dead.

Seven officials from the Makkah mayor's office and an official from the Ministry of Commerce, as well as the building's owner and the contractor who built the hotel, were held responsible for the accident that took place on January 5, 2006, just two days before the start of the annual Haj pilgrimage.

All ten accused intend to approach the Court of Cassation with an appeal challenging the verdict, according to court sources.

Preparations

The four-storey structure, called Luluat Al Khair, in Gazza in the vicinity of the Haram Mosque, collapsed while the pilgrims were making final preparations for the Haj.

The dead pilgrims included 48 men and 28 women of various nationalities. At least 59 pilgrims were rescued. The building was 40 years old and its foundations were cracked and weak.

The hotel's owner was sentenced to three months in jail and handed a fine of 90,000 riyals, while the other nine accused were given one month jail sentences and fines of 10,000 riyals each.

Judge Abdul Wali Al Salami, who read the verdict after a trial that lasted nearly two years, said the sentences were light considering the huge loss of life, because the public prosecutor could not establish total responsibility of the accused in the accident.

"The verdict was based on public rights and it did not cover the private rights of the victims," Al Salami said.

"None of the men admitted that they were directly or indirectly responsible," the judge said, adding that the sentences would be carried out only after endorsement by the Board of Appeal. The men have the right to appeal.

The judge ordered all those who accompanied the accused, including their lawyers and legal agents, to leave the courtroom while he was reading the judgment.

Ebrahim Al Shadwi, the lawyer representing the owner of the hotel, said his client was ill and would not be able to serve his prison sentence.

"I plan to file a petition for clemency on medical grounds to get my client exempted from the jail sentence," he said in statements to reporters, adding that his client had been brought to court from hospital, as the judge had insisted that he be present.