Judges step down from Central Bank case

Judges who presided over cases that involved huge money withdrawal from the Central Bank stepped down from the trail citing 'untruthful' media reports.

Chief Justice Saeed Abdul Baseer and two colleagues who were due to announce a verdict on one of the cases on Monday said the case had been compromised after two local newspapers published articles on September 28 saying judges had issued an acquittal, reported 'The National'.

"Media outlets reported the court acquitted the defendants last month, but the case was still under deliberation for a decision," he said and added "this untruthful reporting put us in an uneasy situation and, therefore, the case would be referred to other judges to preside over it."

Meanwhile, the two reporters involved in writing the stories were initially referred to the Public Prosecution and their passports confiscated. However, the allegations were later dropped and their passports returned.

Monday's trial involved an Iranian, IK, and an American of Iranian descent, NB, who appeared before the court on June 19 charged with fraud and forging documents after attempting to withdraw Dh14.4 billion from the Central Bank in April.