Foreign Beggar With 500,000 Dinar In The Bank Held In Kuwait

The Kuwaiti cops caught an unusual foreigner----a man with a begging bowl in his hand, but 500,000 Kuwaiti Dinar, or over Rs 10 crore in the bank, according to hindustantimes.

He was a foreign beggar who got arrested in a mosque near Kuwait City and was taken over in custody.

While security servicemen were guarding the area, they saw the man telling worshipers near the mosque that he badly needed money, as he did not have a home, Khaleej Times quoted security sources as telling the Kuwaiti daily, Al Rai.

Getting arrested as he was breaking the law, he was put in custody at Al Ahmadi police station, in which an investigation found his bank account worth 500,000 Kuwaiti Dinar or above Rs 10 crore, according to the sources.

Like other countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), including Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, begging is prohibited in Kuwait, which has pledged zero-tolerance to begging, especially during Ramadan, when people, both locals and foreigners, tend to develop a stronger urge to donate pursue charitable acts.

In April, 22 beggars, including Asians, were caught for pursuing people. Begging has become lucrative for several foreigners in the Gulf, according to media reports. One spokesperson for the social affairs ministry in Saudi Arabia added that the foreigners total upto 85% of all the beggars, even as the Saudi citizens constitute the rest of them.

In 2012, the Kuwaiti police caught an expatriate who had been dressed as a woman to beg for money.