12 men jailed, fined Dh1.9 million for stealing from policeman's bank account in Dubai

Dubai - The real bank account holder found out when his mobile phone service was disconnected.

Twelve men involved in embezzling large amounts of money from a policeman's bank account have been sentenced to jail terms ranging from three months to two years by a Dubai court.
The Court of First Instance found them guilty of charges including forgery, embezzlement, fraud, breach of trust, abuse of power, disclosing confidential information, bribery, and criminal complicity and ordered that they all be deported after serving their respective jail sentences and paying jointly fines worth in total Dh1.9 million. 
According to public prosecution records, the twelve defendants include an Asian bank employee, who leaked the victim's bank account details to accomplices.
The case dates back to early 2016, and the fraud took place at a time when the complainant was out of the UAE.
The real bank account holder came to know about the incident when his mobile phone service got disconnected. He found out shortly later about the embezzlements from his account and his bank instructed him to lodge a complaint first at Al Rashidiya police station.
Through investigation, it transpired that the defendants had applied, in the victim's name, for a replacement SIM card on his mobile number that is linked with the bank account.
They got in contact with the bank, impersonated the victim, and used his mobile number service to unlawfully request money transfer and withdrawal transactions.
They availed of the new SIM card in the victim's name, thanks to the help of a customer service employee at a telecom provider who received Dh10,000 as a bribe.
At one occasion, they fraudulently withdrew Dh 175,000, after forging transfer forms, stamping them with the complainant's faked signature.
The verdict may be appealed.
- mary@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai