Cairo: Kuwait has announced the dismantling a gang unlawfully trading in iqamas or residency permits for expatriates, the second such racket uncovered in the country in less than a week.
The Kuwaiti Interior Ministry said that as part of continued security efforts to expose iqama traders, police arrested a gang composed of several persons holding Egyptian and Syrian nationalities implicated in trading in residency permits through a phantom company.
The ministry released a photo of four suspects after arrest. Investigations showed that the accused had transferred iqamas of workers residing in the country via the non-existing company, charging fees ranging from KD700 ($2,283) to 1,000 per worker.
On Tuesday, Kuwaiti authorities said they had uncovered a ring of Syrian, Egyptian and Asian nationals accused of unlawfully transferring workers' iqamas with help of a local company in exchange for money. The suspects are seven, media reports said
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Investigations revealed that the company had recruited those workers for sums of money ranging from KD700 (nearly Dh8,388) to 1,000 per worker, the Interior Ministry said.
Fake companies
In August, Kuwait announced busting two such gangs and arresting their members for trading in iqamas via fake companies.
The cases surfaced as Kuwait is pressing ahead with a massive-scale clamp-down on illegal expatriates.
Authorities there have recently mounted 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 leave willingly 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 were 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 will also be 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 including 3.3 million foreigners.
