DHAKA: The two Bangladeshis executed in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday (Oct 14) had been held in detention since August 2023 in connection with separate allegations, according to a confidential memo from the Bangladesh Consulate General in Jeddah obtained by The Daily Star.
The memo, dated Oct 18 and sent to the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment, identifies the two as Nazrul Islam Abdul Basir and Sweety Akhtar, who were executed in Makkah.
A prisoner list received by the consulate on Sept 30 shows that Nazrul was detained on Aug 1, 2023, under Saudi Arabia's cybercrime law. Sweety was detained the following day on allegations of adultery.
According to the memo, Nazrul was held at Jeddah Correctional Facility and Sweety at Jeddah Women's Prison. Both had worked as cleaners for Al Majal Company.
The prisoner list made no mention of death sentences against either of them. Although it included brief descriptions of offences involving 97 prisoners, the relevant column contained no such details for the two Bangladeshis.
Saudi Arabia's interior ministry announced their executions, saying they had been convicted of an "immoral act" inside a mosque in Makkah.
The consular memo, however, does not explain how the allegations recorded in September relate to the offences for which the two were executed.
The consulate also said it knew of no previous case in which a Bangladeshi national had been sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia for offences under the cybercrime law or for adultery.
The memo puts the number of Bangladeshis imprisoned in Saudi Arabia's western region at 306. Of them, 147 had received prison sentences ranging from one month to 15 years.
It also cites three separate cybercrime cases in which the prison terms ranged from six months to five years.
Regarding court proceedings, the consulate said interpreting assistance was available in Saudi courts, but defendants could not choose their own interpreters under the arrangement described in the memo.
The document does not state whether either of the executed Bangladeshis had an interpreter or legal representation during their trials.
According to the memo, the consulate had received no application or communication from either prisoner's family seeking legal assistance.
It also states that Saudi authorities had not informed the Bangladesh embassy or the consulate general, either officially or unofficially, about the death sentences or their implementation.
The consulate has since sent a note verbale to the Makkah branch of the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, seeking copies of the judgments and details of the proceedings. It said a further report would follow once the judgments were received. - The Daily Star/ANN
