Four jailed for stealing medicines worth Dh4.2 million in UAE

Sharjah - Most of the stolen drugs were for treating cancer.

Four men have been jailed by the Sharjah Criminal Court for stealing medicines worth Dh4.2 million from a warehouse in the Sharjah industrial area. Most of the stolen drugs were for treating cancer.
The court sentenced the first defendant to three years in jail and the second, third and fourth accused in absentia to five years each. It acquitted seven accused who were charged with selling and buying the medicines.
The details of the case came to light when the Sharjah Police received a call from an agent of a drug store located in the Sharjah industrial area, reporting a "large-scale theft of medicines" from its warehouse. The police probe revealed that the stolen drugs were purchased by several companies without invoices.
The police arrested an Arab man and his accomplices and charged them with theft. Some of the accused were charged with illegal sale of drugs and others with purchase of stolen drugs.
A witness told the court that the warehouse manager had spotted the first convict, R.A, who worked as a driver at the company, stealing a number of medicines from inside a refrigerator. Following an audit, the exact shortage of drugs was discovered during the annual inventory process. The CCTV footages were reviewed, which showed the first accused carried out the theft.
The defendant's illegal act was caught on cameras installed on the refrigerator and at the entrance and exit of the warehouse.
amira@khaleejtimes.com

• Sharjah