Article 70 of the Saudi Implementing Regulations of the Criminal Procedure Law
المادة 70 من اللائحة التنفيذية لنظام الإجراءات الجزائية · الفصل الخامس: الاستماع إلى الشهود
This article of the Regulations leaves the assessment of a witness's excuse for not attending to the investigator, and allows him to delegate someone else to hear a witness living outside his territorial jurisdiction, or to hear him himself with approval.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
1- يُرجع في تقدير العذر المانع من حضور الشاهد - وفق ما ورد في المادة (المائة) من النظام - إلى المحقق.
2 - إذا كانت إقامة الشاهد خارج حدود اختصاص المحقق المكاني، فللمحقق أن يندب غيره لسماع شهادته وفق الأحكام المنصوص عليها في النظام واللائحة، مع بيان الوقائع التي يرغب الإفادة عنها، وإن رأى ضرورة مباشرة سماع الشهادة بنفسه، جاز له ذلك بعد موافقة رئيس فرع الهيئة في المنطقة أو رئيس الهيئة - بحسب الأحوال - ويدون ذلك في محضر التحقيق.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 70 explained in plain English
This article of the Implementing Regulations of the Criminal Procedure Law deals with two situations that may prevent a witness being heard in the usual way:
- The witness's excuse: Assessing the excuse that prevents a witness from attending, as provided in Article 100 of the Law, is left to the investigator. It is the investigator who decides whether to accept the excuse, and the article gives no examples of excuses.
- The witness lives outside the investigator's territorial jurisdiction: In this case the investigator has two options:
- To delegate someone else to hear the testimony under the provisions of the Law and the Regulations, stating the facts he wishes to be informed about.
- Or, if he sees a need to hear the testimony himself, he may do so after the approval of the head of the Bureau's branch in the region or the head of the Bureau, as the case may be, and this is recorded in the investigation report.
The Bureau, according to Article 1 of the Regulations, means the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution.
This article is linked to Article 69 of the Regulations, which regulates preventing witnesses from communicating, confrontation between them and concealing a witness's identity, and to Article 71, which deals with recording the accused's appointment of his lawyer at the investigation stage.
If you have been called to testify and have an excuse or live in another city, you can consult a lawyer who specializes in criminal cases to learn what to follow.
Practical example
Fahd lives in Abha and is a witness in a case being investigated in Riyadh. The Riyadh investigator may delegate another investigator to hear Fahd's testimony, stating the facts to be reported, or may travel to hear it himself after obtaining the required approval.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 70 of the Saudi Implementing Regulations of the Criminal Procedure Law
Who decides whether a witness's excuse for not attending is accepted?
Assessing the excuse that prevents a witness from attending is left to the investigator.
How is the testimony of a witness living outside the investigator's area heard?
The investigator may delegate someone else to hear it, stating the facts required, or hear it himself if he sees a need, after the approval of the head of the Bureau's branch in the region or the head of the Bureau, as the case may be.
More articles on Interrogating the Accused and Hearing Witnesses
- Article 50
The article requires the investigator's delegation of an expert to be written, stating the task and its time limit, under the investigator's oversight, and regulates giving the expert access to evidence and his duty to perform the task himself.
1- يكون ندب المحقق للخبير لإبداء رأيه في مسألة متعلقة بالتحقيق - وفقاً لما ورد في المادة (السادسة والسبعين) من النظام - مكتوباً، ويحدد في الندب المهمة المطلوبة،
- Article 51
The article sets the content of the expert's report, the case of several experts who differ, the investigator's discussion with the expert, a litigant's expert's right to review materials, and adding reports to the case file.
1- يقدم الخبير عند إنجاز مهمته المطلوبة منه - وفقاً لما ورد في المادة (السابعة والسبعين) من النظام - تقريراً مؤرخاً وموقعاً منه يتضمن ملخصاً للمهمة وإجراءات الك
- Article 52
The article leaves assessing urgent cases to the investigator, bars repeating an objection to an expert once rejected unless new grounds arise, and allows raising it before the court.
1- يرجع في تقدير الأحوال التي تقتضي الاستعجال - المشار إليه في المادة (الثامنة والسبعين) من النظام - إلى المحقق. 2 - في حال عدم قبول المحقق للاعتراض - المشار إل
- Article 67
This article of the Regulations regulates hearing a witness before the investigator: notifying him, interpretation, deficient capacity, a reasoned refusal to hear him, and how his testimony is taken and discussed.
1- يكون تبليغ الشاهد للحضور لسماع أقواله بالوسيلة المناسبة التي يراها المحقق. 2 - إذا كان الشاهد لا يتحدث العربية أو يتحدثها بلهجة يصعب فهمها؛ فيستعين المحقق بث
- Article 68
This article of the Regulations requires the witness's testimony and answers to be recorded verbatim, and the interpreter's name, those present, and the place and time of the testimony to be recorded in the investigation report.
تدون في محضر التحقيق شهادة الشاهد وأجوبته عن الأسئلة المطروحة عليه بنصها كما نطق بها، ويثبت فيه - بالإضافة إلى البيانات الواردة في المادة (السادسة والتسعين) من
- Article 69
This article of the Regulations allows the investigator to prevent witnesses from communicating with each other, explains the two methods of confrontation and what is recorded in it, and allows a witness's identity to be concealed where needed.
1- للمحقق اتخاذ ما يراه لمنع اتصال الشهود الحاضرين ببعضهم، حتى ينتهي من سماع شهادة كل منهم. 2 - تكون المواجهة - المنصوص عليها في المادة (الثامنة والتسعين) من ال
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.