The Ministry of Commerce has defamed a citizen and an expat of Yemeni nationality after a court ruling condemning them of violating the Anti-Commercial Concealment Law. It has been proved that the citizen enables the expat to engage in wholesale and retail of ready-made clothes and fabrics in Riyadh.
The Ministry has published a summary of the judicial ruling issued by the Criminal Court in Riyadh, which includes imposing a fine, closing the facility, liquidating the trade activity, canceling the license, writing off the commercial registry, preventing the citizen from practicing the same activity, collecting zakat, fees and taxes, deporting the expat from the Kingdom and not to be allowed to return for work, besides defamation by publishing the verdict in a local newspaper at the expense of the violators.
In details, MC inspection teams suspected a case of commercial concealment at an establishment engaged in the activity of textile and ready-made clothes in Al-Nazim neighborhood, eastern of Riyadh. After carrying out the necessary investigation, it has been proved that the citizen is enabling the expat to run the Est. as if he were the owner. Therefore, the case was referred to the concerned authority for taking the legal measures against the violators in accordance with the Anti-Commercial Concealment Law.
It should be noted that the new law for combating the commercial concealment, which was recently approved by the Council of Ministers, relied on mechanisms that contribute to eliminating the sources of commercial concealment and putting an end to the shadow economy.
The law included heavy penalties of up five-year imprisonment, a fine of up to five million riyals, seizure and confiscation of the illegal funds of the violators, after final court rulings were issued against them, in addition to other penalties, including closing the facility, liquidating its trade activity, writing off the commercial registry and preventing the convicted person from practicing any economic activity for a period of five years, besides deporting the expat from the Kingdom and not to be allowed to return for work.
The Ministry of Commerce receives reports and complaints about the commercial concealment through MC Consumer Call Center (1900), or through the application of a Commercial Violation Report, or via the Ministry’s website. Notably, the Ministry grants a financial reward to the informer of up to 30% of the total fines after collection, which may reach to five million riyals against each violator.