UAE: Couple jailed for stealing Dh50,000 luxury car sold on social media

The woman took the car key and said she would just check the car, but she didn't return, court records show

Ismail Sebugwaawo

Published: Thu 9 Mar 2023, 9:24 AM

Last updated: Thu 9 Mar 2023, 1:36 PM

An Arab couple in Ras Al Khaimah has been accused of stealing a Mercedes Benz car worth Dh50,000 from a resident.

The woman was considered the main defendant in the case as she pretended to be a buyer of the car. She was sentenced to six months in prison.

Court records show that the victim put his car up for sale on social media, and the woman reached out to him expressing interest in buying the car. He agreed to sell the car at Dh50,000.

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The woman then told him that she would be sending him a copy of her Emirates ID and the location where he should deliver the car after the payment.

The man told the court that he had to drive the car from Dubai to Ras Al Khaimah —where the couple reportedly lived —after the woman said she had transferred the money via a banking app. She added it would take about three hours for the money to reflect in his bank account.

When he arrived in Ras Al Khaimah, the couple told him to meet them at a certain coffee shop. The woman showed him the bank transfer message, which was still pending. She told him that they should wait in the coffee shop until the money reaches his bank account, and only then should they proceed with the car registration transfer process.

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Meanwhile, the woman took the car key that was on the table and stepped out of the coffee shop, saying she would like to check the car, leaving her husband with the seller.

The complainant said that after a while, her husband also asked him for an excuse to go to the restroom, but he didn’t return. And when the plaintiff went out to look for the couple, he couldn't find them and his car.

The man said he tried calling the couple more than 20 times, but they had switched off the phones.

This is when he realised that they had stolen his car and had lied to him about transferring the cash to him because nothing appeared in his bank account.

He then filed a complaint at the police station and prosecutors referred the case to the one-day court in Ras Al Khaimah after investigating the matter.

The couple did not appear in court and criminal judgment was issued in absentia imprisoning the woman, the main defendant in the case, for a period of six months.

The plaintiff then filed a lawsuit at the Ras Al Khaimah Civil Court demanding that the defendant pay him Dh50,000, the value of the car she stole, in addition to a Dh10,000 compensation for the damages he suffered.

The final ruling is yet to be issued in the case.

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