Dubai man robbed of Dh18,000 at Bur Dubai temple

Picture used for illustrative purposes alone

Dubai - Pickpocketing results in Dh18,000 loss to resident, forgery and impersonation crimes

A happy family visit to the Bur Dubai temple during Diwali on October 30 turned out to be a nightmare for an Indian advertising professional.
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Ajay M. Bhat was pickpocketed during the festival, losing his wallet which contained Dh600 cash, credit and debit cards, Emirates ID, driving licence and many other documents.
Adding to it, Dh8,000 was withdrawn from his account within half an hour, followed by a series of forgeries using his Emirates ID. Three postpaid SIM cards were bought in his name and an iPhone 7 was purchased from a telecom company.
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Now, the hapless Bhat is busy making the rounds of police stations and telecom company offices to stop any further crime and damage from happening in his name.
On the fateful festival day, the Mamzar resident had visited the temple. "I went to the temple with my family in a festive mood, wearing a loose pyjama-kurta. At the temple, around 7:30pm, there was a crowd of about 50 people," Bhat said. When he got to the second temple is when Bhat realised his wallet was missing. "Within 15 to 20 minutes, I received three SMS from my bank, alerting me about withdrawals worth Dh8,000.
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"Unfortunately, I had written down the ATM PIN number on the back of the card, and withdrawals were made from an Abu Dhabi-based bank's ATM counter, about five minutes away from the temple. The three withdrawals occurred at 7:50 pm, 7:51 pm and 7:52 pm," Bhat said, showing us the messages from the bank.
Bhat rues the mistake he made - writing the pin number on the card. "I complained to the Al Rafaa Police station at 9:25 pm, but the money withdrawals had already been made. Later that night, I also got a call from someone saying that he found my wallet, but my credit card and Emirates ID were missing. I got back my driving licence and a few other documents," he said.
The wallet has since been turned over to Dubai Police, for their ongoing investigation.
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But Bhat's bad luck did not end even after his wallet was found.
A few days later, he realised that three Du and Etisalat SIM cards were taken out in his name, using the missing Emirates ID and fabricated salary certificates. "One day, my Du number was not working and when I checked with the company, they said I had crossed Dh2,000 credit limit and that three new postpaid SIM cards were registered in my name."
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On further inquiry, it was discovered that a female applicant had used the Emirates ID and forged the salary certificate from a well-known school in Dubai and an advertising company, to buy the SIM cards. "Even after I reported the theft of my national ID to Al Rafa Police Station, the sim cards were obtained using the same ID, and fabricated job and salary certificates. I have altogether lost about Dh18,000 from this incident. It is a serious issue and needs to be investigated," Bhat said.
An iPhone 7 was also purchased with the forged job certificate created with the Emirates ID details.
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Bhat has also complained to the telecom companies, asking them to cancel the new numbers and not issue any more SIM cards in his name. But the issue remains about who will foot the bills from the fraudulently obtained SIM cards.
A police investigation is on to track down the smart pickpockets who misused the ATM card as well as the Emirates ID.
The Dubai Police have confirmed the incident and an Al Rafa station police official said they were carrying out the investigation, noting that Bhat was late in reporting the incident to the police.
The police have also warned the public about similar incidents happening in crowded areas. There have been several cases of people using stolen IDs to get SIM cards, going on to make calls costing thousands of dirhams before they were brought to justice.
These new spate of crimes involving personal and smart cards are of growing concern to the authorities and security officials. In a recent incident, the Dubai Police arrested an international gang which collaborated with criminal elements working at banks and telecom companies, to get SIM cards and withdraw money from banks. These criminals take advantage of people's negligence, when they don't check their bank transactions or inform officials on time.
The police have urged residents to keep a watch on their bank accounts, bank cards, cheque books, SIM cards, ID cards, passport and passport copies, as any or all of these can be used to forge documents, withdraw money or make transactions in the owner's name.
What to do if you are pickpocketed or lose your wallet?

• Report incidents on the spot, say the police; call immediately
• If you lose your IDs, inform the issuing authority and ask for a replacement (residents are legally bound to report the matter within 7 days). The police must also be informed about it.