120 Saudi Government Staff Detained For Suspected Bribery, Job Exploitation
Saudi Arabia's state anti-corruption watchdog has interrogated 435 suspects this month and arrested 120 of them on suspicions of graft amid a relentless clampdown on white-collar corruption in the kingdom.
The detainees are employees at the ministries of interior, defence, municipalities and housing, human resources, transport, and health, as well as the Zakat, Tax, and Customs Authority, the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority said. They were investigated on charges of bribery and job exploitation.
The watchdog, known as Nazha (Integrity) has reaffirmed its commitment to monitoring, exposing, and prosecuting anyone involved in abusing public office, vowing to protect public funds and reinforce transparency in both public and private sectors.
In recent years, hundreds of state employees and businesspeople in Saudi Arabia have been interrogated for suspected corruption and mismanagement of public money.
In January, local media reported that Saudi authorities had arrested 1,708 people in 2024, including government staff, over suspicions of corruption, money laundering, and influence trading. These arrests followed 4,000 investigations and over 37,000 oversight rounds.
During last year's Hajj season, Nazaha also carried out 9,600 inspections at Mecca's holy sites and affiliated agencies, resulting in 155 arrests linked to corruption.
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