Gold Crafts and Money Seized, those Involved Referred to the Public Prosecution
MCI inspection teams have shut down three unlicensed jewelry shops in Jeddah province. They were found guilty of violating Precious Metals and Gem Stones Law and its Executive Regulations, following the existence of a suspected cover-up case, and for practicing the jewelry activity without obtaining official licenses. Expats of Arab nationality are running the shops. Necessary investigation is going on, in preparation for referring the case to the Public Prosecution for taking the legal measures, in accordance with the provisions of the Anti-Commercial Concealment Law and Precious Metals and Gem Stones Regulations.
MCI inspectors seized a number of goldsmiths from these shops and sending some samples for examination and analysis in specialized laboratories, in order to verify the regularity of their calibration.
The Ministry of Commerce and Investment stresses the importance of committing and adhering to the Rules & Regulations by all commercial institutions, and the importance of getting the necessary licenses to practice the jewelry activity. MCI also stresses the importance of registering the trademarks by the manufacturers and suppliers, in accordance with the regulations and procedures followed in the Kingdom. All gold and jewelry crafts, whether manufactured within the Kingdom or imported from abroad, should be stamped and show calibration. This is for the protection and preservation of the consumers rights.
The Ministry of Commerce and Investment is in charge of controlling the cases in violations and applying the provisions of Anti-Commercial Concealment Law, which stipulate for two-year imprisonment and a fine of one million riyals on each violator, also the deportation of non-Saudis from the Kingdom, in addition to defaming the violators in local newspapers at their own expense, besides imposing other penalties, including closure and liquidation of the trade activity, cancellation of the commercial register and preventing the violator of practicing the same trade activity.
The Precious Metals and Gem Stones Regulation also provides for a number of penalties against fraud and deception in this kind of trade activity. The law imposed a penalty of imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years, and a fine not exceeding to SR 400,000 or by either of them for any fraud or deception relevant to the kind, weight or calibration of precious metals, or the coated items, as well as for any violation related to deception or fraud in gem stones.
MCI controls all irregularities related to gold and jewelry bills, such as not writing the license number, date of sale, price, weight, type and full description of the item, besides verifying the existence of licenses for practicing the trade activity, in addition to controlling irregularities related to calibration and the trademarks of the manufacturer or importer.
The Ministry of Commerce and Investment emphasizes the continuation of monitoring and following-up the precious metals and gem stones shops, and verifies the legality of their work and their compliance with the law and its executive regulations. All consumers are kindly requested to lodge their complaints and reports through MCI Consumer Call Center (1900), or through the application of a Commercial Violation Report, or via the Ministry's website.