By NOOR TOORANI

MANAMA

A BUSINESSMAN, who was earlier convicted of hiring an expatriate worker illegally, was declared innocent by the High Criminal Appeals Court. The Bahraini man, 56, was fined BD500 by the Lower Criminal Court for illegally hiring the Indian man.

He was arrested in January last year after a government official made a routine inspection of shops in Manama.

According to testimonies by the Bahraini inspector at the Public Prosecution, the worker was alone in the shop when he made his inspection. Upon checking his documents the inspector found that the worker’s visa had expired even before he was hired, according to court documents.

“When I checked the documents I found that the man was hired after his visa expired, which means the owner knew about it,” said the inspector.

According to police report, the man’s visa states that he was a labourer working at a construction site when he actually worked as a shop manager.

During the Bahraini man’s appeal hearing, his defence lawyer told the judge that his client should not take the fall for hiring the worker as he is a silent partner in the business and is not in charge of the day-to-day activities.

The court then found the defendant innocent and cleared him of all charges.

It is understood the Indian man is being prosecuted separately for staying in the country illegally.