Almotamar.net - Judicial source said Friday the appeals section at the Specialised Criminal Court has fixed Saturday a date for holding the first sitting for trying chairman and members of the Watani Bank board of directors.

The source clarified to almotamar.net that the general prosecution appealed the preliminary verdict passed on 13 of last March as the punishment was not proportionate to what is stipulated in the law, demanding for inflicting the severest punishments in the case of embezzlement and betrayal of trust by chairman and members of the bank board of directors and facilitation for themselves and others control on money and savings of contributors and depositors estimated at more than YR19 million.

The first instance section in Sana'a under chairmanship of Judge Najib al-Qadiri issued its verdict on 13 March 2007 against the defendants with imprisonment of the first accrued in the bank embezzlement case Ahmed Ali Hamoud al-Hamdani for two years and he would be responsible for loans and facilities granted without guarantees.

The verdict also included the imprisonment of four other defendants in the case for eight months each and gave one year imprisonment to other three of the condemned in the case.

The prosecution has accused 11 defendants, 9 of whom from the board of directors of the bank, charging them with betraying trust and facilitating for themselves and others putting their hands on funds of the Watani Bank for Trade and Investment. Those funds were from savings of contributors and depositors and were estimated at more than YR 19million.