MUSCAT: Six people have been sentenced to prison terms of between three and five years in a case involving embezzlement, bribery and document forgery linked to labour supply contracts at Mazoon Dairy, Oman’s Public Prosecution said.

The criminal division of the Court of Appeal in Al Seeb convicted the six following an investigation into financial and administrative irregularities at the company. The Supreme Court upheld the ruling, according to a statement from the prosecution.

The case was referred to prosecutors by the State Audit Institution. Investigators found that the defendants had exploited contracts to supply workers to retail outlets dealing with the company, where their duties included arranging, displaying and promoting its products.

The irregularities included supplying workers in breach of contract terms, manipulating staffing requirements and inflating attendance records by including people who had performed no actual work.

Investigators also uncovered exaggerated calculations of working days and overtime, alongside manipulation of workers’ job classifications to obtain payments without entitlement.

Two Omani defendants, Raed bin Ali bin Saleh and Al Ayham bin Abdullah bin Salem, were each sentenced to five years in prison. Their convictions included embezzlement through forgery, use of forged documents, soliciting bribes, forgery of official documents and related offences involving public funds and breaches of official duties.

Raed was fined RO146,134 and Al Ayham RO137,886. Each was also ordered to repay an amount equivalent to his fine to his employer.

Two foreign nationals, Mohammed Zubair Syed Awan and Mohammed Abbas, were each sentenced to three years in prison and fined RO137,856.

Their convictions included participation by agreement in embezzlement through forgery, involvement in forging official documents, bribing a public official and forgery of private documents. They were jointly ordered to repay RO137,856.

Mohammed bin Khalfan bin Salem, an Omani, received a three-year prison sentence and a RO55,000 fine for bribing a public official.

A sixth defendant, foreign national Mohammed Amir Azam, was sentenced in absentia to three years in prison and fined RO24,316 for bribing a public official.

The court also permanently dismissed the first two defendants from public service and barred them from holding public office.

The third, fourth and sixth defendants are to be permanently deported after serving their sentences.

Additional orders included the confiscation of forged documents for destruction and a 2023 Range Rover for the benefit of the state treasury.