11 November 2009
They didn’t get far though. Dubai Police sent out 42 teams to track the suspects and the gold down and managed to find both and have them sent back to Dubai shortly after they left.
Brigadier Khalil Ibrahim Al Mansouri, Director of the General Department of Criminal Investigation, said the police found the suspects were on a flight to Hong Kong and had them sent back on the next flight to Dubai.
“The stolen gold had been shipped by the gang members to another country in Latin America before their departure,” Al Mansouri said.
The theft allegedly took place on October 29 when a Malaysian trader in jewellery left the Gold Souq, carrying two bags of gold bars, to fly to Malaysia from Dubai International Airport. He intended to have the gold crafted into jewellery in Malaysia before selling it in Dubai.
While collecting his luggage from the car at a point in Terminal 1, he found one bag missing. He looked for it in various locations in the airport but could not find it.
He alerted the police who found from airport camera footage a Honda Accord parked near the gold trader’s car. The same car was seen in Gold Souq cameras when the businessman left for the airport.
Ahmed Al Merri, Director of the Criminal Investigation Section, said cameras only showed parts of the car but the police managed to obtain some of the numbers on the number plate and established it was a rented car.
Police checked 303 car rental offices and tracked the car to one office where the suspects had given false names.
The police learnt that the thieves are Mexicans — two men and three women. They arrived in Dubai on October 26.
Officers scoured hotels across the country and found a group that left from Abu Dhabi International Airport despite having return tickets from Dubai. Police coordinated with Interpol and the suspects were arrested upon their arrival in Hong Kong.
Major Rashid Saleh, Director of Money Crimes, said the suspects were believed to have previously stolen items and smuggled them out of countries by hiding them in teddy bears or electronic items via shipping companies. The suspects had come to Dubai earlier through prostitution rings.
“We found the car used by the suspects on an internal road near the flat of a gang member and the key was inside the car,” Saleh said.
“When searching the car, the police found a shipping invoice which fell from a gang member while transporting the gold.”
The cargo was shipped to Mexico but the company and a European country through where it was sent coordinated its recovery. Brigadier Al Mansouri said the businessman had not taken precautionary measures required, including coordinating with the police and having security guards when carrying such valuables.
