Fake businessman to serve 6 months in jail

Ehab Atta, Staff Reporter

The Criminal Court of Dubai on Tuesday sentenced a fake Arab businessman, 30, to six months in jail plus deportation over cheating a translator countryman, 33, and swindling Dhs50,000 from him.

The plaintiff stated he knew about the convict through an ad posted in a local newspaper about his company.

“It was written the company operates in project management and provides profits up to 15 per cent. Thus, I contacted the company, but failed to reach the accused, as he was allegedly busy,” he said.

He continued, “A few months later, I received a phone call from the convict’s secretary, an Asian, offering to invest my money in the company against 15 per cent profits.”

“I agreed initially. And she arranged a meeting with the owner,” he added.

The plaintiff noted, “I met the accused, who introduced himself as the owner and the manager of the company. He showed me the ownership documents and the trade license bearing his name.

He further said, “The accused offered me to invest Dhs50,000 in a deal of buying and renting a warehouse in return for a monthly profit of 15 per cent or Dhs7,500. I liked the idea and endorsed a cheque under his name, not the company, based on his request. I also did it so as to be able to sue him if any doubts aroused later,” he said.

“ He also said, “Several months later, during which I received monthly profits as per the deal, the accused stopped paying giving multiple excuses.”

“I then discovered the company is fake and that man a swindler. Also all profits, which I was receiving, were from my money. I lodged a complaint against him with the police,” he added.

Mohammed Barakat reported The Sharjah Criminal Court adjourned to May 7 to hear witnesses in the case of an Arab charged with submitting false statements to a public official and using the ID card of another.

The suspect denied the charges, claiming that the ID he was charged to sue was his brother’s, who traveled to his country and left it with him.

He added he had put it in his wallet and when the employee asked for his Id card, he took out his wallet, and his brother’s ID fell out of it, so the employee took it by mistake.