Saudi Arabia Arrests Middle East Richest Person For Corruption

Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, the wealthiest person in the Middle East on FORBES list of billionaires, has been arrested, according to various media reports. A source in the region also shared with Forbes a list of those arrested.

According to The New York Times, Saudi satellite TV network Al Arabiya announced that "11 Saudi princes, four sitting ministers and ‘tens’ of former ministers have been arrested on orders from the new anti-corruption committee headed by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.”

Representatives of Alwaleed did not respond to a request for comment at the time of the publication of this article.

Alwaleed bin Talal, who has degrees from Menlo College and Syracuse University, controls the Saudi-listed investment firm Kingdom Holding, which owns stakes in Citigroup, Twitter and many other companies. Through Kingdom Holding, he also owns the George V hotel in Paris, has a stake in the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan and controls satellite television networks in Arab countries. Alwaleed owns 95% of Kingdom Holding. The 62-year-old prince has a net worth $18.7 billion, according to Forbes estimates.

Besides his wealth, he is known in the western world for supporting Saudi women's right to drive. In 2013, Forbes published an article about Prince Alwaleed that examined the share price movement of Kingdom Holding Also reportedly arrested: 76-year-old Saudi billionaire Saleh Kamel (net worth: $2.2 billion) and his sons. A representative for Kamel could not be reached for comment. 

Crown Prince Salman, a son of Saudi King Salman, is just 32 years old and widely considered to be next in line to become the Saudi monarch. In a break with the long Saudi tradition of the monarch naming a brother or a nephew as crown prince, King Salman named his son Mohommed the crown prince in June this year. Mohammed Bin Salman was already serving as defense minister and as head of an economic council. Known as MBS, the crown prince has talked of modernizing Saudi Arabia and reducing the country's dependence on oil.  Details about the specific charges against those who were arrested are not yet known.

 

SOURCE : FORBES

Comments Post Comment

Leave a Comment

Submit