Manama: Saudi authorities have arrested the main suspect in a mixed booze party after a short clip went viral on the Internet.
The clip showed two men and several Arab women dancing and enjoying themselves on the terrace of a building, but no comments were made about when or where it was filmed.
But the police, upon scrutinising the clip, were able to determine the location after they recognised the Jeddah Flagpole, at 70 metres the tallest in the world, and worked out the details that helped them pinpoint the terrace and the building, Saudi daily Okaz reported on Sunday.
The main suspect was arrested and after initially denying any knowledge about the party admitted that he organised it and invited several Arab girls and an expatriate man.
“An investigation team was assembled to watch the clip and determine where it happened,” Ati Al Qarshi, a spokesperson for the Makkah police, said.
Several participants, all Arabs, were arrested and referred to the public prosecution pending further investigations.
Action has been taken to arrest the other participants.
Saudi Arabia has a very strict policy about the mixing of unrelated men and women and the sale or serving of alcohol.
Courts have traditionally sentenced the men found guilty in cases related to “depraved parties” to prison terms and lashes.
