Photo for illustrative purposes only. ARCHIVE

The Dubai Criminal Court fined a driver and two accomplices Dh1.9 million and sentenced them to seven years in prison, followed by deportation, for kidnapping an investor and robbing him of Dh1.9 million after threatening to murder him. The offenders fled with the money they concealed with a fourth man, leaving the victim chained in his car. The fourth defendant was likewise ordered to be deported by the court. The incident occurred in September of last year in Downtown Dubai when the investor instructed his driver to transport him to his place of employment in the Gold Souk. However, the driver halted the car and claimed a mechanical issue. The victim claimed that as soon as the driver exited the car, he was suddenly confronted by two other people who attacked him and brandished a knife, threatening to stab him. The victim said the two defendants informed him that they were police officers and that he was being arrested and required to ride with them in their car. The victim was assaulted by the two defendants when he refused to go along with them, the witness continued. He claimed that the driver and the two defendants informed him that he would have to pay Dh4 million as a ransom. He added that he phoned his wife and a friend to arrange the payment and instructed them to give it to someone carrying a banknote with a specific serial number. The victim's friend gave the gang members Dh1.7 million, but they demanded more. The victim then phoned one of his staff members and requested that he give one of the accused Dh200,000 from the business safe. The defendants took the victim's money, shackled his hands and feet, and covered his eyes with a blindfold before one of them drove off in his car and left him on the side of a street. Later, the victim managed to untie his hands and went to the police station, where he filed a complaint. According to the official documents, the driver and his two accomplices were located after a detective team gathered evidence and made deductions. The fourth defendant's former workplace was a farm, where the defendants were detained. The defendants' possessions totaled Dhs1.6 million. The driver confessed during questioning that he and his two accomplices had chosen a date for their robbery and intended to rob the investor since he was wealthy. The fourth defendant denied involvement in the heist or knowledge of the defendant's scheme. He used the fact that the driver was a friend to explain the defendant's presence on the farm where he worked. BKM/ Expat Media
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