Doha, May 14 (QNA) - The Public Prosecution announced today that the Criminal Court of First Instance has convicted a Qatari female employee and four Arab nationals, while acquitting another defendant, after the Attorney General referred them to trial on charges related to offering and accepting bribes, mediating bribery, abuse of official authority, and money laundering.

According to the Public Prosecution, investigations were launched following a complaint filed by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry against one of its employees for committing several administrative violations. The violations involved processing commercial license applications for shisha cafés and massage and relaxation businesses for a commercial establishment in violation of applicable laws and regulatory procedures.

Investigations revealed that the employee had received bribes from the other convicted individuals in exchange for facilitating the transactions. The total value of the bribes amounted to QAR 201,140. The Public Prosecution stated that investigations and supporting inquiries, in addition to confessions by several of the convicted defendants, confirmed the commission of the offenses.

In a statement, the Public Prosecution said the court sentenced the employee to four years' imprisonment and imposed a fine equivalent to the value of the bribe for the offenses of accepting bribes and abuse of official authority. She was also sentenced to one year in prison and fined QAR 2 million on charges of money laundering.

The Egyptian national convicted of offering the bribe was sentenced to four years' imprisonment and fined an amount equal to the bribe for bribing a public official. He was additionally sentenced to one year in prison and fined QAR 2 million for money laundering and will be deported after serving his sentence.

The court also sentenced the remaining convicted defendants, who hold Tunisian and Egyptian nationalities, to four years in prison each and imposed financial penalties for participating in the bribery of a public official.

The court acquitted one of the defendants of all charges brought against him. (QNA)