Manama: Security authorities in Saudi Arabia have arrested 18 men for wreaking havoc in a recreation station in Ihsa in the Eastern Province.
Video clips from the damage inflicted by the men, aged between 18 and 42, went viral on the Internet, prompting calls by social media users to take stringent action them.
The men had rented the station and its recreational facilities, including a swimming pool, for the day, a practice that is widely followed in the country by people keen on enjoying time together away from the city cafés and restaurants.
However, the men indulged, laughingly, in damaging the property and threw a motorcycle and a large tyre in the swimming pool. They could also be seen drifting on motorbikes near the pool, uprooting trees and throwing air conditioner boxes on the floor.
No reason for the general frenzy was given, although many social media users explained it as a “collective act of ugly fun.”
The police said that an investigation was launched as soon as the video was posted on social media and that the security authorities initially identified six of the people involved.
“The other 12 people were arrested later and all the suspects were referred to the public prosecution for investigation,” Ziyad Al Ruqaiti, the spokesperson for the Eastern Province police said, quoted by Saudi daily Okaz on Tuesday.
The police could identify the culprits after they were able to locate the recreation station and to summon its owner, he added.
