A woman found guilty of embezzling more than £19,000 from the Fife Arabic Society has been handed an unpaid work order.
Sura Miyasar (or Sulaiman) was previously convicted by a jury of embezzling the money when she was treasurer of the Fife Arabic Society (FAS) in St Clair Street, Kirkcaldy.
The offence happened between October 2016 and October 2019.
The 62-year-old was found to have cooperated with her husband, Adnan Miyasar – now deceased – and transferred funds from bank accounts pertaining to FAS into accounts in their names and embezzled £19,256.60.
Miyasar was found guilty after a trial in February and appeared for sentencing at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court last week.
Sheriff Robert More sentenced her to 180 hours of unpaid work and made a token £1 confiscation order.
Trial in Kirkcaldy
An earlier trial heard the FAS had received grant funding from the Heritage Lottery.
Accounts shown in court showed transfers being made for reasons such as salary, expenses and maintenance.
Miyasar, of Dean Park Brae, Kirkcaldy, was found to have been transferring the money to her own accounts.
The deception came to light when the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) was notified by a trustee who said he was fobbed off after querying bank statements.
Police were then contacted.
Its website states Fife Arabic Society was founded in 2000 to “promote understanding of Arab culture, language and society among the wider population; provide advocacy, support and signpost services for individuals and families.”
Adnan Miyasar founded the organisation – and other ventures – having moved to Kirkcaldy from Iraq in 1992.
He died in January 2021 and a motion marking his passing and recognising his contribution to Fife society was raised in the House of Commons.
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