Man attacks woman in lift in Dubai, steals purse, Emirates ID

Dubai - He got off the lift and ran down the emergency stairs.

Marie Nammour

Published: Sun 20 Aug 2017, 4:30 PM

Last updated: Mon 21 Aug 2017, 11:00 AM

A 24-year-old unemployed man, who attacked a female resident in the lift of the building where she lived and snatched her purse, was charged with forcible robbery in the Court of First Instance.

According to public prosecution records, the Nigerian man waited for the moment when he was alone with the victim, a Filipina, to attack her with the aim of snatching her purse.

"It was around 7pm when I was done with my work at a cleaning service company in the Marina area. I went back to my place in the Chinese cluster, International City," said the Filipina woman, 27.

"As I walked in the lift, I pressed the button for the 2nd floor while an Indian woman wanted to go to the first. A man (the defendant) pressed on the button for the 4th floor. Once the Indian woman reached her floor and got out, he suddenly attacked me."

The complainant said the man grabbed her by her neck and covered her mouth. Before she could go out of the lift on the 2nd floor he forcibly snatched her purse.

There was Dh2,500, 2,000 Filipino pesos, and a golden necklace and a golden bracelet together worth about Dh2,600, in her purse.

She had also two mobile phones worth Dh1,625.

The defendant also stole her Emirates ID, a bank card and a health card. When he went to the 4th floor she screamed for help in the corridor. People, who happened to be around, called the police.

The accused reached the 4th floor and then exited the building through the emergency stairs.

"We picked up the accused from Al Qusais police detention centre around 2pm on March 13, after obtaining a prosecution approval. He had been detained in connection with another complaint," a police officer said.

"We had suspicions he was the man who had attacked the complainant in the present case, given the same criminal pattern. He would target people while they are alone with him in lifts, overpower them to snatch their belongings and then escape through the emergency exits. Besides, the descriptions given by this complainant helped in catching him after we checked the building CCTV footage," the officer told the prosecutor.

The complainant identified the defendant among other African suspects three times at the police station.

mary@khaleejtimes.com