I lost a Dh30,000 ring at a Dubai salon. Can I file a police complaint?

Question: I lost a diamond ring at a salon in Dubai that I visited two weeks ago. The salon staff claim that they have not found the ring. This ring costs Dh30,000 and I am desperate to get it back. The salon does not have closed-circuit TV cameras, which could assist the authorities to trace the ring. Do you think I can file a police case against the salon?

Pursuant to your queries, if you are sure that the diamond ring was lost in the salon, you may approach the police station under whose jurisdiction the said salon is situated to file a criminal complaint. The complaint may be in writing or even given in the form of an oral statement before a police officer, who will record your statements in Arabic. Thereafter, you will sign your oral statement.

Once your complaint is registered with the police station, the police may summon the staff of the salon and will obtain an oral or written statement from them. Thereafter, the police officer may refer the complaint to relevant departments within the police station for review and investigations.

Once the aforementioned procedures are followed, the police may transfer your complaint to the public prosecution to refer the case to the criminal court. If the criminal court finds the staff of the salon guilty of stealing your diamond ring, it may sentence the staff concerned to a six-month imprisonment and fine.

This is in accordance with Article 390 of the Federal Law No. (3) of 1987 on Issuance of Penal Code, which states: “Whoever commits an act of theft to which none of the conditions mentioned in the preceding Articles of this Chapter is applicable shall be punished by detention for at least six months, and by a fine.”

In the event the police do not accept your complaint against the salon, you may directly approach the Dubai Public Prosecution.

On the other hand, if the salon has displayed a disclaimer notice that it shall not be responsible for personal belongings of their customers, it could use this to defend itself before the authorities.

Ashish Mehta is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates. He is qualified to practise law in Dubai, the United Kingdom and India. Full details of his firm on: www.amalawyers.com. Readers may e-mail their questions to: news@khaleejtimes.com or send them to Legal View, Khaleej Times, PO Box 11243, Dubai.

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