عربي
Summary
Salem Almuzaini, a Saudi national, has been arbitrarily detained by the Saudi State Security Agency since August 24, 2020. Almuzaini's family last heard from him on May 31, 2021, during a very brief call from a Saudi prison. Other than this call, he has been held incommunicado since December 2020. Almuzaini is the son-in-law of Saad Aljabri, a close advisor to the former Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef whom Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman (MBS) saw detained and tortured; Aljabri is now suing MBS in U.S. federal court.
Saudi authorities first detained Almuzaini without charge on September 27, 2017, and held him until January 18, 2018. During this time, they subjected him to torture and abuse. Saudi officials first released Almuzaini only after he surrendered large sums of money and financial assets to the government's sovereign wealth fund. Upon his release, Saudi officials banned Almuzaini from travel and forced him to wear an ankle monitor before detaining him again on August 24, 2020.
Between his initial and current detainment, from January 2018 to August 2020, Almuzaini recounted his detention and torture to his wife Hissah Saad Almuzaini, who lives outside of Saudi Arabia, over a series of phone calls. Almuzaini also recorded a lengthy first-hand account of his experience and asked Hissah to release this account should Saudi officials detain him again. These accounts and Hissah Almuzaini's testimony are recorded in an affidavit filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on June 30, 2021. Many of the Saudi security officers who detained, interrogated, and tortured Almuzaini also have been implicated in the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, including Badr Lafi Alotaibi, a Major in Saudi Arabia's General Intelliegnce Directorate.
Emirati State Security officials first arrested Almuzaini on September 26, 2017 in Dubai and extradited him to Saudi Arabia the next day. Saudi authorities then detained Almuzaini in Jeddah and transferred him to al-Ha'ir prison in Riyadh, before transferring him to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Riyadh along with numerous prominent Saudi business executives, royal family members, and former government officials. Saudi officials then forced those detained to transfer the bulk of their money and assets to the Saudi government as a condition to their release from arbitrary arrest at the Ritz Carlton.
Among the assets Saudi officials forced Almuzaini to transfer to the government was Sky Prime Aviation, a company founded by former Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef and located in Dubai. Almuzaini held a 25% ownership stake in Sky Prime Aviation and was the company's CEO. Almuzaini transferred all of the company's assets, including its private airplane fleet, to the Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, in November 2017. Less than a year later, MBS used two of the company's private airplanes to transport members of the 15-person hit squad that killed Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018. Saudi authorities, particularly Major General Salah al-Jutaili, also attempted to lure Salem Almuzaini's wife, Hissah, to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul less than a month before Khashoggi's murder at the same location.
Methodology
DAWN researchers relied on publicly available information, primarily the affidavit Hissah Saad Almuzaini submitted to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on June 30, 2021 (the "Affidavit"), as well as interviews with three family members on separate occasions listed below, for this investigation. The Affidavit details Salem Almuzaini's initial torture and detention lasting from September 27, 2017 until January 28, 2018. Salem Almuzaini also narrated these details to his wife Hissah over phone calls and different messaging platforms between his release from detention in January 2018 and his second detention that began in August 2020.
The Affidavit also contains Salem Almuzaini's hand-written testimony of his abduction and transfer to Saudi Arabia by Emirati security officials, and detention and torture by Saudi authorities. Almuzaini's hand-written testimony contains names, locations, and details of key events that corroborate information with other publicly available records.
DAWN researchers interviewed members of Salem Almuzaini's family on the following dates:
- Family Member 1: November 4, 2021
- Family Member 2: October 30, 2021; November 4, 2021
- Family Member 3: January 19, 2021; January 23, 2021; October 15, 2021; October 18, 2021; November 4, 2021
- Family Member 3 also completed a line-by-line review of relevant sections of this report on September 16, 2021.
DAWN does not disclose the identity of its sources to protect the privacy and security of these individuals. All of the information below is attributable to publicly available information or confidential interviews completed by DAWN researchers and its vetted sources.
Personal and Professional Background
Salem Almuzaini holds a bachelor's degree in computer science from King Saud University and a bachelor's degree in security sciences from King Fahd Security College, both in Saudi Arabia. Almuzaini married Hissah Aljabri on October 2, 2008. They have two children, Saad (7) and Mohammed (5). At the time of their marriage, Almuzaini worked in the Communications Department at the Saudi Interior Ministry. In 2009, he became responsible for the Aviation Division. Shortly thereafter, then Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, who was also the Interior Minister, appointed Almuzaini CEO of his company Alpha Star Aviation Services. Almuzaini remained CEO of that company until 2015.
In or around 2015, bin Nayef appointed Almuzaini as CEO of Sky Prime Aviation Services ("Sky Prime Aviation"). In December 2016, Almuzaini and his family relocated to Dubai to accommodate this position and because Sky Prime was expanding its operations. In August 2017, Almuzaini's wife and children left Dubai, but an Emirati security officer prevented Almuzaini from traveling and soon thereafter Emirati State Security abducted him and handed him over to the Saudi authorities. In November 2017, Saudi authorities forced Almuzaini into transferring ownership of Sky Prime Aviation to the Saudi government. After unlawfully detaining and torturing Almuzaini, Saudi officials coerced him into surrendering ownership of Sky Prime Aviation to the government via the Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund. Although Almuzaini personally owned only 25% of the company's assets, the Saudi government forced him to transfer all of the company to the Public Investment Fund.
Time and Circumstances of Arrest
On August 24, 2020, Saudi State Security authorities detained Salem Almuzaini. Saudi officials have held Almuzaini without charge since this date and they have held him incommunicado since May 31, 2021.
According to testimony recorded in the Affidavit from Salem and from his wife Hissah, al-Jutaili told Almuzaini in a previous meeting that he was "no longer useful," raising Almuzaini's fears that they would arbitrarily detain him again. According to Family Member 1, Saudi State Security Major General Salah al-Jutaili summoned Almuzaini to his office in Riyadh for a meeting on August 24, 2020, before Saudi officials detained and disappeared him.
About one week after the August 24 meeting, Saudi authorities called Khaled Almuzaini, Salem's brother, to retrieve Salem's car from the security gate to al-Jutaili's office.
Charges and Legal Proceedings
Saudi authorities have not charged Salem Almuzaini with any crimes, nor initiated any legal proceedings against him since his detention on August 24, 2020. During this time, they have not allowed him to see a lawyer.
Almuzaini's only interaction with the Saudi judiciary occurred in or around November 2017, in the final weeks of his first detention at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh, when Saudi authorities summoned a Saudi judge and notary to record Almuzaini's transfer of 400 million Saudi Riyals ($108 million USD) of his money from his bank accounts and ownership of Sky Prime Aviation to the Saudi government, according to Almuzaini's first hand-account of his detention in the Affidavit. There is no indication as to when or whether the Saudi government will commence legal proceedings against him.
Detention Conditions
Saudi authorities previously detained Almuzaini without charge from September 27, 2017 until January 18, 2018. During this time, Almuzaini said that Saudi authorities tortured and abused him. According to Almuzaini's hand-written testimony and the information that he conveyed to his wife, both in the Affidavit, Saudi authorities brutally tortured Almuzaini and subjected him to persistent ill treatment during his initial detainment lasting from September 2017 through January 2018.
In this testimony in the Affidavit, Almuzaini describes the physical and psychological torture that his Saudi interrogators subjected him to, including beatings, whippings, forced stress positions, electrocution, and food deprivation. Almuzaini describes beatings with iron bars and cruel practices, such as a prison guard whipping his genitals each time he walked to the washroom. Further cruel, inhuman, and degrading practices included forcing Almuzaini to crawl on the floor and bark like a dog. Saudi authorities tortured Almuzaini when he was initially detained in Jeddah and then when he was transferred to al-Ha'ir Prison in Riyadh. When detained at the Ritz-Carlton, he was physically abused less and allowed more food to make him more presentable for his release.
Nonetheless, months after his release, Almuzaini's body still showed the marks of torture, as documented in the pictures attached to the Affidavit filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. According to Family Member 1, after his release from his detention and before being detained again, Almuzaini required plastic surgery to fill an indentation in his forehead caused by a strike from an interrogator.
During this time, his toenails continued to fall off due to repeated blows to his legs and feet. According to Family Member 1, Almuzaini suffered from anxiety and trauma following his initial release, made worse by continued surveillance, harassment, and intimidation by Saudi officials.
His current whereabouts and detention conditions since his second detention in August 2020 remain unknown.
Impact on Family
Salem Almuzaini's family remains under serious threat from the Saudi government. According to Almuzaini's stated testimony in the Affidavit, Saudi authorities also have detained, held, and tortured Almuzaini's brother, Majed Almuzaini, whose whereabouts remain unknown after he also was forcibly disappeared by Major General Salah al-Jutaili on June 20, 2020.
Saudi authorities also have detained Almuzaini's brother-in-law Omar Aljabri and his sister-in-law Sarah Aljabri as a form of collective punishment to pressure their father Saad Aljabri to return to Saudi Arabia. Saudi authorities arrested Omar and Sarah in March 2020 and they have held them incommunicado since January 2021.
Saudi authorities also attempted to lure Hissah Almuzaini, Salem Almuzaini's wife, into the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul around the same time they murdered and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi in the consulate. In August 2018, according to Almuzaini's hand-written account, al-Jutaili asked Almuzaini to convince his wife to return to Saudi Arabia or to go to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul to renew her Saudi passport. Hissah also detailed al-Jutaili's attempts to pressure Salem to have her go to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul and her refusal to do so within her testimony in the Affidavit.
A week later, according to Almuzaini's first-hand account in the Affidavit, al-Jutaili asked Almuzaini if he had convinced his wife to go to the consulate. Almuzaini said he had suggested it to her, but he was not sure if she would go. At a later meeting with Almuzaini, al-Jutaili insisted that Hissah go to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul to renew her passport even if she did not want to return to Saudi Arabia. Salem and Hissah both considered this demand odd, and as Hissah later stated, "We both felt this was very strange and wondered why al-Jutaili suddenly seemed very interested in having me go to the consulate in Istanbul."
Less than a month after the meeting where al-Jutaili insisted that Hissah should go to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Saudi officials murdered and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi at the same location. Like Hissah and other exiled Saudis, government authorities repeatedly told Khashoggi to go to a Saudi Consulate to complete paperwork.
In addition to unlawful detentions, forced disappearances, and torture, Saudi authorities have harassed Salem Almuzaini's family since his initial detainment in 2017. According to Family Member 1, government officials have denied family members access to government services and stopped them from acquiring basic documents such as birth and marriage certificates.
The Saudi government also continues to harass Almuzaini's father-in-law, Saad Aljabri, by alleging that Aljabri stole billions of dollars from Saudi state-owned companies before fleeing the country.
Violation of Rights
Freedom from Arbitrary Deprivation of Liberty
Article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Right (UDHR) states, "No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile." Similarly, Article 9(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) provides, "Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention. No one shall be deprived of his liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedures as are established by law." There are 173 States Parties to the ICCPR, suggesting that the treaty may constitute customary international law, making its provisions binding on States regardless of whether they have formally signed and ratified the treaty.
The U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concluded that the prohibition on the arbitrary deprivation of liberty is a non-derogable right under treaty and customary international law. Similarly, the International Committee for the Red Cross found that State practice establishes the prohibition on the arbitrary deprivation of liberty to constitute a norm of customary international law applicable in both international and non-international armed conflict. The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court also recognizes the prohibition on arbitrary detention. The violation of this right may constitute a crime against humanity under Article 7(1)(e) of the statute or a war crime under Article 8(2)(a)(vii), depending on the context of the violation.
Saudi State Security Major General Saleh al-Jutaili detained Salem Almuzaini and has held him incommunicado since August 24, 2020. Saudi authorities have not formally charged Almuzaini with any crime and they have not allowed him to see a lawyer. Since December 2020, Saudi officials have held Almuzaini incommunicado and prevented him from contacting his family.
Previously, on September 26, 2017, UAE State Security forces arrested Almuzaini without an arrest warrant, and transferred him to Saudi Arabia a day later. The Saudi authorities then held Almuzaini incommunicado in a secret detention facility in Jeddah for two-and-a-half months before allowing him to call his mother. Saudi authorities held him for a total of four months without charge before releasing him on January 28, 2018.
Though they never charged Almuzaini with any crime, Saudi authorities accused him of embezzlement and money laundering without presenting any public evidence of these alleged crimes. Saudi authorities released Almuzaini only after he transferred 400 million Saudi Riyals ($108 million USD) and personal assets, including ownership of Sky Prime Aviation to the Saudi sovereign wealth that MBS oversees.
Freedom from Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
The right to freedom from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment is a universally recognized human right. This right is expressed in numerous human rights treaties and the prohibition on torture has attained not only customary international law status, but also jus cogens status as a peremptory norm of international law that gives rise to an erga omnes obligation, as all states owe a legal duty to take action against individuals committing torture. Numerous international human rights treaties recognize this right. Article 5 of the UDHR states, "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment." Article 7 of the ICCPR repeats this prohibition verbatim.
Saudi Arabia is also a State Party to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. This treaty categorically prohibits torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, while also requiring States to "take effective legislative, administrative, judicial or other measures to prevent acts of torture in any territory under its jurisdiction" (Article 2). It also requires that allegations of torture receive prompt and impartial investigation (Article 11). Saudi domestic law also prohibits torture. Article 2 of the Saudi Law of Criminal procedure states, "A person under arrest shall not be subjected to any bodily or moral harm. Similarly, he shall not be subjected to any torture or degrading treatment."
According to Almuzaini's hand-written testimony and the information that he conveyed to his wife, Saudi authorities brutally tortured Almuzaini and subjected him to persistent ill treatment during his initial detainment lasting from September 2017 through January 2018. In this testimony, Almuzaini describes the physical and psychological torture that his Saudi interrogators subjected him to, including beatings, whippings, forced stress positions, electrocution, and food deprivation.
Almuzaini describes beatings with iron bars and cruel practices, such as a prison guard whipping his genitals each time he walked to the washroom. Further cruel, inhuman, and degrading practices included forcing Almuzaini to crawl on the floor and bark like a dog. Saudi authorities tortured Almuzaini when he was initially detained in Jeddah and then when he was transferred to al-Ha'ir Prison in Riyadh.
Months after his release, Almuzaini's body still showed the marks of torture, as documented in the pictures attached to the Affidavit filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. After his release from his detention and before being re-detained, Almuzaini required plastic surgery to fill an indentation in his forehead caused by a strike by an interrogator and his toenails continued to fall off due to repeated blows to his legs and feet. Almuzaini suffered from anxiety and trauma following his initial release, made worse by continued surveillance, harassment, and intimidation by Saudi officials.
The Right to a Fair Trial
The right to a fair trial is a recognized human right, expressly stated in numerous international and regional human rights treaties. Article 10 of the UDHR states, "Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his [or her] rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him [or her]." Article 14(1) of the ICCPR states, "All persons shall be equal before the courts and tribunals. In the determination of any criminal charge against him, or of his rights and obligations in a suit at law, everyone shall be entitled to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established by law." Likewise, Article 7 of the Arab Charter on Human Rights (ACHR) provides, "The accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a lawful trial where defence rights are guaranteed."
Saudi authorities denied Almuzaini his right to a fair trial. Saudi officials have not formally charged Almuzaini with a crime, despite numerous accusations of embezzlement. At no point have Saudi officials presented any evidence of this embezzlement. Further, Saudi authorities have denied Almuzaini access to a lawyer or any form of legal representation. Prosecutors have yet to act in Almuzaini's case, and Saudi officials have yet to forward his case to the judiciary for review.
Accused without evidence and held without charge, Almuzaini remains detained without access to a lawyer or legal representation. Saudi authorities have entirely denied Almuzaini the right to a fair trial by simply refusing him a trial or chance to answer any charges brought against him.
Government Officials Involved in Detention, Interrogation, and Torture
Almuzaini remained blindfolded during the majority of his initial interrogation and torture, as documented in his hand-wrriten account of his detention. Nonetheless, later in his detention he was able to identify several individuals who interrogated and tortured him, as detailed below. Almuzaini identified these individuals both visually and audibly, by hearing their voices during his detainment. He specifically identified the following individuals:
Salah al-Jutaili
[Photo not available, if you have a photo of this person, please email saudiinfo@dawnmena.org.]
Salah al-Jutaili is a Saudi State Security Major General. Al-Jutaili monitored and handled Salem Almuzaini when Saudi officials released him from detention in January 2018 and oversaw his subsequent detention in August 2020. According to Family Member 1, Family Member 2, and Family Member 3, Almuzaini told them that al-Jutaili was present at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel when Saudi authorities forced Almuzaini to transfer 400 million Saudi Riyals ($108 million USD) in cash and ownership of Sky Prime Aviation to the Saudi government. According to Almuzaini's written testimony in the Affidavit, al-Jutaili is also responsible for the forcible disappearance of Salem Almuzaini's brother, Majed Almuzaini, on June 20, 2020, and of Omar Aljabri and Sarah Aljabri, Saad Aljabri's youngest son and daughter, in March 2020.
Salah al-Jutaili is responsible for extensively documented human rights violations of well-known Saudis, such as religious scholar Salman Alodah and women's rights activist Loujain Alhathloul. Al-Jutaili was personally involved in trying to deter Alhathloul from continuing her peaceful activism. He summoned Alhathloul to his office about a week before her arrest on or around May 8, 2018, and threatened and verbally abused her. In August 2019, al-Jutaili tried to force Alhathloul to record a video in which she would deny torture and mistreatment from Saudi officials in return for her release, according to eyewitnesses and documented by DAWN. Alhathloul refused and remained in prison. In January 2020, al-Jutaili confiscated two letters from Alhathloul's family in which she complained about the lack of due process and her mistreatment while in detainment.
Between January 2018 and August 2020, al-Jutaili used Salem Almuzaini to pass messages to Saad Aljabri and Aljabri's family. According to Almuzaini, al-Jutaili told Almuzaini to pass a message to Khalid Aljabri, Almuzaini's brother-in-law, to stop tweeting unless he wants "things to escalate." In August and September 2018, al-Jutaili pressured Almuzaini to convince his wife and Saad Aljabri's daughter, Hissah, to go to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul to renew her Saudi passport even if she did not intend to return to Saudi Arabia. Less than a month later, Saudi officials lured Jamal Khashoggi into the same consulate in Istanbul, where a team of killers brutally murdered and dismembered Khashoggi. On March 9, 2020, al-Jutaili asked Almuzaini to arrange for Sarah Aljabri and Omar Aljabri, Saad Aljabri's youngest children and Almuzaini's sister-in-law and brother-in-law, to go to al-Jutaili's office. One week later, al-Jutaili had both Sarah and Omar forcibly disappeared. They remain detained without a charge. On June 20, 2020, al-Jutaili asked Almuzaini to bring his brother, Majed, with him to their meeting. Al-Jutaili then detained and forcibly disappeared Majed.
Al-Jutaili is from the city of Onaizah in al-Qassim Province. King Salman appointed al-Jutaili head of the Saudi State Security's legal department in 2018. In this role, al-Jutaili oversees interrogation, house searches, and the treatment of prisoners. Saudi State Security manages prisoner visits and calls, and is responsible for feeding prisoners.
Badr Lafi Alotaibi
According to Almuzaini's testimony in the Affidavit, Badr Lafi Alotaibi was the lead interrogator and torturer throughout Salem Almuzaini's detention, interrogation, and torture in 2017. Alotaibi was one of the few Saudi officials who allowed Almuzaini to remove his blindfold in his presence. Almuzaini named Alotaibi as his harshest torturer.
Alotaibi also was a member of the fifteen-person team that killed and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018. Alotaibi may have known Khashoggi personally, from when Khashoggi served as advisor to Turki bin Faisal Al Saud, then the Director General of Saudi Arabia's Intelligence Services.
Saudi authorities have not investigated or prosecuted Alotaibi for torturing Almuzaini. It is unclear if Alotaibi is one of the eight defendants that a Saudi court found guilty of killing Khashoggi in a decision rendered on December 23, 2019.
In November 2018, the U.S. Department of Treasury sanctioned Alotaibi and 16 other Saudi agents under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act for their roles in Khashoggi's murder.
Badr Lafi Alotaibi, 48, is a Major in Saudi Arabia's General Intelligence Directorate, the government's primary intelligence agency.
Saud al-Qahtani
According to Almuzaini's testimony in the Affidavit, former royal adviser Saud al-Qahtani was present during some of his interrogation sessions at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh. Al-Qahtani was Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's handpicked advisor to oversee the extortion of Saudi businessmen, royal family members, and former officials in November 2017, as well as the torture of other high-profile human rights defenders, including Jamal Khashoggi.
The United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and all 26 European Union member states imposed a travel ban on al-Qahtani for his role in Khashoggi's murder. The United States and the United Kingdom also imposed sanctions on al-Qahtani. Turkish prosecutors indicted al-Qahtani for his role in the murder, and he is currently standing trial in absentia for this crime. In contrast, Saudi officials did not even bring al-Qahtani to trial, citing a lack of sufficient evidence.
Al-Qahtani also oversaw the torture of human rights defender and women's rights activist Loujain Alhathloul. During Alhathloul's forced disappearance in a secret prison in 2018, security officials, including al-Qahtani, subjected her to psychological and physical torture. Saudi officials electrocuted, whipped, and sexually assaulted Alhathloul, while subjecting her to sleep deprivation. Al-Qahtani oversaw this torture on multiple occasions. According to Alhathloul's family members, during one of these sessions, al-Qahtani told her, "I'll kill you, cut you into pieces, throw you in the sewer system. But before that, I'll rape you."
Al-Qahtani helped target Saudi exiles living abroad and oversaw the surveillance and hacking of Saudi journalists and human rights defenders. Al-Qahtani helped create the climate of fear now pervasive throughout Saudi Arabia. For example, he dictated messages to Saudi writers and social media figures, and imprisoned at least two individuals who refused to repeat his directives.
In September 2021, following a campaign by Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), Washington D.C. lobbyist Ed Newberry and his associates at Squire Patton Boggs dropped their contract with the Saudi government to lobby for the Saudi Center for Studies and Media Affairs at the Saudi Royal Court, which al-Qahtani led.
Al-Qahtani was born in 1978 and graduated from King Saud University with a bachelor's degree in law. Al-Qahtani entered the Saudi Air Force, earning the rank of Sergeant. Later, al-Qahtani worked as media consultant for the Saudi Royal Court from 2012–2019. According to The Guardian, al-Qahtani re-emerged in the royal court in December 2021, after a three-year absence.
Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb
According to the testimony in the Affidavit, Almuzaini told his wife Hissah that Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb was present during some of Salem Almuzaini's interrogation and torture.
Mutreb led the 15-person team that killed and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018. Mutreb flew to Istanbul on October 2, 2018, together with eight other members of this team. Mutreb and his group traveled on private planes operated by Sky Prime Aviation. Almuzaini owned a 25% stake in Sky Prime Aviation and served as the company's CEO before Saudi officials tortured and coerced him into transferring 400 million Saudi Riyals ($108 million USD) of his money and the ownership of the company to the Saudi government while Almuzaini was unlawfully detained.
Saudi officials have not investigated or prosecuted Mutreb for his role in forcibly disappearing and torturing Almuzaini or otherwise violating Almuzaini's fundamental human rights. It is unclear if Mutreb is one of the eight defendants that a Saudi court found guilty of killing Khashoggi in a decision rendered on December 23, 2019.
In November 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned Mutreb and 16 other Saudi agents under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act for their roles in Khashoggi's murder.
Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb, 50, is a Saudi intelligence officer who worked closely with Saud al-Qahtani when al-Qahtani served as advisor to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Photographs show Mutreb accompanying Mohammed bin Salman as a member of his security detail during a March 2018 visit to the United States. Mutreb previously served as first secretary in the Saudi embassy in London in the 2000s.
Meshal Saad Albostani
According to the testimony in the Affidavit, Almuzaini told his wife Hissah that he identified Meshal Albostani as one of his interrogators during his detention in Jeddah and at al-Ha'ir prison in Riyadh. Family Member 3 confirmed that Almuzaini told them that Albostani interrogated Almuzaini in Jeddah and al-Ha'ir prison.
Albostani was a member of the fifteen-person team that killed and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018. On the day of Khashoggi's murder, Albostani was stationed at the Saudi Consul General's residence, where intelligence officials and investigators believe that Khashoggi's body was disposed.
Saudi officials have not investigated or prosecuted Albostani for his role in forcibly disappearing and torturing Almuzaini or otherwise violating Almuzaini's fundamental human rights. It is unclear if Albostani is one of the eight defendants that a Saudi court found guilty of killing Khashoggi in a decision rendered on December 23, 2019.
In November 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned Albostani and 16 other Saudi agents under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act for their roles in Khashoggi's murder.
At last notice, Meshal Albostani is a First Lieutenant in the Saudi Air Force.
Mohamed Saad Alzahrani
According to the testimony in the Affidavit, Almuzaini told his wife Hissah that he identified Mohammed Saad Alzahrani as one of his interrogators.
Alzahrani travelled to Istanbul on October 1, 2018, with two other members of the fifteen-person team that murdered Jamal Khashoggi the next day.
Saudi officials have not investigated or prosecuted Alzahrani for his role in forcibly disappearing and torturing Almuzaini or otherwise violating Almuzaini's fundamental human rights. It is unclear if Alzahrani is one of the eight defendants that a Saudi court found guilty of killing Khashoggi in a decision rendered on December 23, 2019.
In November 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned Alzahrani and 16 other Saudi agents under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act for their roles in Khashoggi's murder.
Mohammed Saad Alzahrani, 33, is a Saudi intelligence officer and a member of the Saudi royal family's security detail.
Saif Saad al-Qahtani
According to the testimony in the Affidavit, Almuzaini told his wife Hissah that he identified Saif al-Qahtani as one of his interrogators.
Al-Qahtani was a member of the fifteen-person team that killed and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018.
Saudi officials have not investigated or prosecuted al-Qahtani for his role in forcibly disappearing and torturing Almuzaini or otherwise violating Almuzaini's fundamental human rights. It is unclear if al-Qahtani is one of the eight defendants that a Saudi court found guilty of killing Khashoggi in a decision rendered on December 23, 2019.
In November 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned al-Qahtani and 16 other Saudi agents under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act for their roles in Khashoggi's murder.
Saif Saad al-Qahtani, 48, was a training specialist in the Saudi Air Force. Al-Qahtani now works for Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman, although his title, occupation, and duties remain unknown.
Abdulaziz Mohammed Alhawsawi
According to the testimony in the Affidavit, Almuzaini told his wife Hissah that he identified Abdulaziz Alhawsawi as one of his interrogators.
Alhawsawi was a member of the fifteen-person team that killed and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018. On the day of Khashoggi's murder, Alhawsawi was stationed at the Saudi Consul General's residence, where intelligence officials and investigators believe that Khashoggi's body was disposed.
Saudi officials have not investigated or prosecuted Alhawsawi for his role in forcibly disappearing and torturing Almuzaini or otherwise violating Almuzaini's fundamental human rights. It is unclear if Alhawsawi is one of the eight defendants that a Saudi court found guilty of killing Khashoggi in a decision rendered on December 23, 2019.
In November 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned Alhawsawi and 16 other Saudi agents under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act for their roles in Khashoggi's murder.
Abdulaziz Mohammed Alhawsawi, 34, was a member of the Saudi Royal Guard and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's security detail.
His current whereabouts and position are unknown.
Mustafa Mohammed al-Madani
According to the testimony in the Affidavit, Almuzaini told his wife Hissah that he identified Mustafa Mohammed al-Madani as one of his interrogators.
Al-Madani was a member of the fifteen-person team that killed and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018. Al-Madani led the team's intelligence efforts and was Khashoggi's body double on the day of the murder. Al-Madani changed into Khashoggi's clothes and wore his eyeglasses and Apple watch before leaving the back door of the consulate to give the appearance that Khashoggi had left the building.
Saudi officials have not investigated or prosecuted al-Madani for his role in forcibly disappearing and torturing Almuzaini or otherwise violating Almuzaini's fundamental human rights. It is unclear if al-Madani is one of the eight defendants that a Saudi court found guilty of killing Khashoggi in a decision rendered on December 23, 2019.
In November 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned al-Madani and 16 other Saudi agents under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act for their roles in Khashoggi's murder.
Mustafa Mohammed al-Madani, 60, is a Saudi Brigadier General and a high-ranking intelligence officer at the Saudi Royal Palace. According to The Guardian, al-Madani was last seen living in a secure compound in Saudi Arabia towards the middle of 2020.
Fahad Shabib Albalawi
According to the testimony in the Affidavit, Almuzaini told his wife Hissah that he identified Fahad Shabib Albalawi as one of his interrogators.
Albalawi was a member of the fifteen-person team that killed and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018.
Saudi officials have not investigated or prosecuted Albalawi for his role in forcibly disappearing and torturing Almuzaini or otherwise violating Almuzaini's fundamental human rights. It is unclear if Albalawi is one of the eight defendants that a Saudi court found guilty of killing Khashoggi in a decision rendered on December 23, 2019.
In November 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned Albalawi and 16 other Saudi agents under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act for their roles in Khashoggi's murder.
Fahad Shabib Albalawi, 36, is a Saudi Royal Guard and a member of the Saudi royal family's security detail.
Mohammed bin Abdulmalek al-Sheikh
According to Family Member 3, Almuzaini told them that Mohammed bin Abdulmalek al-Sheikh oversaw the unlawful expropriation of assets from prominent Saudi businessmen and former government officials detained at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Riyadh in November 2017, including Salem Almuzaini. According to Family Member 3, Almuzaini also told them that through his assistant, Hendi Alsuhaimi, al-Sheikh ensured that Salem Almuzaini transferred his money and assets, including ownership of Sky Prime Aviation, to the Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund. Alsuhaimi, acting under the direction of al-Sheikh, forced Almuzaini to disclose his assets in writing and then to call his bank to complete these transfers, as detailed in the Affidavit.
Mohammed al-Sheikh was appointed chair of the Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property on November 13, 2020, a position which he currently holds. He is also Minister of State, cabinet member, and a member of the Council for Economic Affairs and Development. He was previously appointed head of the Saudi Sports Authority by royal decree in April 2017. Before these positions, al-Sheikh headed the Saudi government's Capital Market Authority from 2013 until 2017, also through appointment by royal decree.
Al-Sheikh worked for the World Bank from 1998 until 2001, before entering private practice for a law firm in New York from 2001 until 2003. Returning to Saudi Arabia, he worked as a legal consultant between 2003 and 2012, before the Saudi government named him as a representative to the World Bank in Washington, DC in 2012. Al-Sheikh has served on several boards, including Aramco and the World Bank Group.
Al-Sheikh was born in Taif, Saudi Arabia on July 20, 1969. He received a bachelor's degree from the Department of Judicial Studies at Umm al-Qura University in Saudi Arabia, and a L.L.M. from Harvard Law School in 1996.
Hendi Alsuhaimi
According to Family Member 3, Almuzaini told them that under the direction of Mohammed bin Abdulmalek al-Sheikh, Hendi Alsuhaimi forced Salem Almuzaini to sign documents at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Riyadh in November 2017 admitting to supposed charges of money laundering and embezzlement. Alsuhaimi also forced Almuzaini to sign documents that transferred his assets, including Sky Prime Aviation, to the Public Investment Fund. According to Family Member 3, Almuzaini also told them that Alsuhaimi threatened Almuzaini during the latter's detention at the Ritz-Carlton that if he did not sign these documents, Saudi authorities would return him to al-Ha'ir prison and they would transfer his assets "the hard way." As a result of his detainment, interrogation, and these threats, Almuzaini complied, and transferred his money and assets to the Public Investment Fund.
Hendi Alsuhaimi is currently the Assistant Finance Minister for Saudi Arabia, a position that he has held since December 27, 2018. Previously, Alsuhaimi served as a technical advisor to Mohammed bin Abdulmalek al-Sheikh. Alsuhaimi also served as assistant to al-Sheikh in 2017 and helped al-Sheikh lead the unlawful expropriation of assets from prominent Saudi businessmen and former government officials detained at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Riyadh.
Alsuhaimi's earlier background and education are unknown at this time.
