In a significant legal development, Saudi Arabia's Supreme Court has upheld the jail sentences totaling 70 years for 26 individuals, including a former judge, in a long-standing high-profile property deed manipulation case that surfaced over a decade ago.

The ruling, now deemed final, reinforces the severity of the charges against the defendants, which include an ex-justice cleric and real estate dealers.

Originating in Al Baha in 2011, the case involved extensive two-month investigations, ensnaring suspects such as businessmen. The charges revolved around the issuance of questionable property deeds, utilizing Saudi nationals' identification cards without their knowledge in transactions related to selling, buying, and proving title deeds.

The legal proceedings involved cross-examination of over 40 witnesses, with 12 defendants held in prison for more than a year pending trial.

Last May, an appeals court delivered imprisonment sentences after convicting the defendants on charges of tampering with property deeds. The offenses spanned bribery, forgery of official documents, money laundering, influence peddling, fraud, and false testimonies.

The accused were specifically charged with forging 22 title deeds of land pieces located in Al Baha. Media reports estimate that the illicit earnings from these dealings reached SR130 million.

This landmark verdict is part of Saudi Arabia's intensified efforts to combat corruption, with a focus on arresting state employees and entrepreneurs involved in such activities. In a related development last March, the kingdom's state anti-corruption watchdog unveiled a multi-million-riyal graft case involving diplomats, security personnel, and expatriates linked to illegal trade in labor visas.