JEDDAH – The District Court in Jeddah has sentenced a Saudi man to two years in prison and 500 lashes of the whip for “swindling and preparing talismans to break spells”.
The man, who was arrested by the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice at an unstated time, was reportedly discovered attempting to break a spell for another Saudi man and turned over to the Commission for Investigation and Prosecution.
The defendant told investigators that he practiced “Shariah ruqya” – religious recitations and supplications – but the prosecution noted that a “book on magic” had been found at his home which he had confessed to bringing into the country from a neighboring country.
The prosecutor is seeking a stiffer sentence for “practicing magic”, while the defendant is to appeal the ruling under which he was convicted for “trickery and deception to swindle money” out of clients. – Okaz/SG