Kuwait cracks down on gang forging medical reports for cash

Cairo: Kuwait said it had dismantled and arrested a four-member gang involved in forging official documents including medical reports.

The suspects are a Kuwaiti man, two Iranian nationals and a member of the Bidoon (person without proper documents) community, according to authorities.

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They were referred to the public prosecution in possession of false documents, government seals, computers and intoxicants.

The Interior Ministry said the suspects had been involved in issuing sick leaves carrying old dates, falsely approved by a famous medical centre and the Medical Licensing Department in exchange for money.

After keeping a close eye on them, police arrested the accused and found in their possession the devices and seals used in forgery as well as suspected intoxicating and narcotic substances, the ministry added in a statement.

It is not clear yet what will happen to those, who had obtained the false medical reports and presented them to their employers.

The case surfaced as Kuwait is pressing ahead with a massive-scale clampdown on illegal expatriates.

Kuwaiti authorities have recently initiated nationwide security campaigns to arrest illegal foreign residents, who failed to take advantage of a three-month grace period to rectify their status.

The amnesty, which commenced on March 17, allowed illegal expatriates to readjust their residency status, or willingly leave the country without paying fines. The deadline ended on June 30.

Irregular expatriates, who had no passports, were able to leave Kuwait without having to pay a fine and are allowed to re-enter the country.

The unlawful resident with no travel document was allowed to get a new one and use it for departure.

The deported violators are banned from re-entering Kuwait for life and other GCC countries for five years, according to media reports.

Kuwait has an overall population of 4.9 million people mostly foreigners.