Saudi Arabia’s Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) has announced a series of arrests involving government officials and private-sector executives in what authorities describe as a broad anti-corruption crackdown targeting bribery, embezzlement and abuse of public office. The cases, uncovered through coordinated investigations with multiple state bodies, highlight systemic risks in procurement, licensing and public fund management, with legal proceedings now underway against all suspects.
Among the most prominent cases is the arrest of a non-Saudi projects director at a company linked to the Public Investment Fund, accused of accepting more than SR2.1 million in bribes from business intermediaries. The payments were allegedly made to secure a renovation contract and facilitate subcontracting opportunities for specific companies. Several individuals involved in arranging the payments, including corporate executives, have also been detained.
In a separate investigation within the health sector, authorities arrested an employee accused of receiving SR500,000 in exchange for influencing the award of two major projects valued at over SR384 million. Prosecutors allege that the total agreed bribe reached SR10 million, with nearly half already distributed among multiple officials, including senior engineering staff and members of a bid evaluation committee. All implicated individuals have been taken into custody.
Nazaha also uncovered corruption cases involving law enforcement and municipal authorities. A retired police officer was arrested for embezzling more than SR2 million from seized funds, while another officer and accomplices were detained for stealing SR1.4 million from a foreign resident. In addition, civil defence personnel were accused of soliciting bribes to ignore safety violations.
Further arrests targeted civil registry employees who allegedly accepted payments to falsify birth registrations and issue identity documents unlawfully, as well as municipal officials involved in bribery schemes tied to land licensing, construction permits and project approvals. Authorities also detained individuals linked to fraudulent access to livestock subsidies and a case involving nepotism, where a public official arranged salary payments for a relative without actual employment.
Nazaha emphasized that these cases demonstrate a continued commitment to pursuing corruption across all sectors, including both public institutions and private entities engaged in state-related activities. The authority reiterated that financial and administrative corruption offences remain prosecutable regardless of when they occurred, underscoring a zero-tolerance approach aimed at safeguarding public resources and reinforcing accountability.