The Court of Appeal has upheld a verdict of the Court of First Instance, sentencing an expatriate to one year in jail and imposing a fine of QR1,000 on him for attempting to bribe an officer at the Abu Samra border post.

The convict made an offer of QR12,000 as bribe to allow him to leave the country without proper exit documents, local Arabic daily Arrayah reported.

The officer had testified that a man approached him to allow one of his acquaintances to leave the country illegally in exchange for a sum of money. The officer informed the authorities concerned to look for the man who wanted to leave the country without proper documentation, according to the daily.

When the man reached the border post, it turned out that he was the same person who had contacted the officer earlier. He offered the officer the money and was allowed him to pass through one of the gates with his vehicle, only to be arrested at the other gate with the bribe amount.