Jobless accused of blackmailing woman with private photos

A 24-year-old jobless man allegedly threatened a woman with circulating her personal photos on the Internet if she did not pay him Dh20,000, a court heard on Wednesday.

The complainant, a 23-year-old Emirati working woman, told the prosecutor that the Emirati defendant sneaked into her villa in the new Oud Al Muttaina area as she was in the bathroom in September last year. She had left one mobile phone on the bed and took the other with her.

It was about 3.30am. She was surprised when she received a call from her own mobile phone and thought that it was one of her cousins. When she walked out of the bathroom, she found that her phone was stolen.

Some other things were also missing, including her bag, a mobile phone (with no SIM card), and some belongings of her aunt including a laptop and a watch.

She was surprised to see text messages from the accused threatening to circulate her photos on the Internet if she did not pay him Dh20,000. She informed the police and was told to go along with the defendant’s scheme to catch him. She left an envelope containing the money beneath a power cable in Oud Al Muttaina and when the defendant came to pick it up, the police flashed their lights on him.

A police corporal said when the defendant tried to speed away, his car rammed a lamppost.

Even then, the defendant managed to escape but his friend, who was with the defendant, was arrested and he denied having anything to do with the incident.

A police major said they found the stolen belongings in the defendant’s car after it hit the lamppost. The defendant has a criminal record.

mary@khaleejtimes.com