3-year jail to salesman for embezzling Dh1.5m

A Jordanian sales supervisor, 42, was sentenced to three years in prison in absentia by the Court of First Instance on Sunday for embezzling more than Dh1.5 million from the car showroom where he worked.

By Marie Nammour

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Published: Mon 11 Jun 2012, 9:37 AM

Last updated: Tue 7 Apr 2015, 11:37 AM

According to prosecution records, the defendant received deposits from customers of the showroom in Al Garhoud in July last year to book for expensive sports cars and instead of putting the sums in the company’s account he embezzled them for himself. He is at large.

A customer relation manager at the showroom, a Jordanian, told the prosecutor that the defendant was given his passport in July last year upon his request as he wanted to go to his country on the pretext of attending his father’s funeral.

In August last year while the defendant was still away, many customers reverted to the showroom claiming they had paid the accused deposits and advance payments to book expensive cars. They wanted to continue the purchase procedures and take the cars. When checking their records, the manager added, they found that indeed there were bookings on cars as the customers claimed. But the defendant did not put the received sums in the company’s revenue account. They realised that the accused made up the story of his father’s funeral to flee the country with the embezzled money. Their several attempts to reach him failed as his mobile phone was constantly switched off.

The manager filed an official complaint at the Rashidiyah Police Station. He claimed the money embezzled by the defendant totalled Dh1.7 million. An Egyptian customer said during the investigation that he paid the defendant Dh220,000 as a part payment to buy a 2011-model sports car. When he went to continue the purchase procedures at the showroom, he came to know that the defendant fled with the money he had paid him. The defendant kept the money for himself and kept the showroom in the dark about his purchase agreement with the customer. Five other customers complained of similar incidents.

A Lebanese manager at the showroom told the prosecutor that the defendant was only authorised to strike the purchase deals with customers, but not to collect money.

mary@khaleejtimes.com


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