Arab woman loses Dhs194,000 in attempt to marry sales executive

Hamza M Sengendo, Staff Reporter

A woman who was eager to find a husband lost Dhs194,000 in an attempt to win the heart of a sales executive, a jury heard on Wednesday.

The Arab sales executive, 28, was referred to the Dubai Criminal Court over allegations that he employed lies and fraudulent means to swindle Dhs194,243 from the Jordanian female programmer, 29.

He stole and used her credit card. He threatened that he landed on her private photos in her old mobile that he would use to shame her. He vowed to land her father in jail unless she continued giving him money.

The saga started in April 4, 2018 and ended in January this year when her father advised her to seek police help. Records showed he had conned several single women around the UAE and one Brazilian woman.

The jury learnt he was detained in Ajman over another case. The jury adjourned the hearing till Sept.22 for the Dubai Public Prosecution to ask the Ajman Central Jail management to hand him over for questioning.

The woman narrated that she announced on Facebook she was looking for a flat to stay in with her parents. The defendant posed as a woman and asked her number. He later asked to meet her about the flat.

They met inside a restaurant in Al Gharhoud. He learnt from her that she was single. He said he wanted to tell her father something. She gave him his number. He claimed he told her father he wanted to marry her.

He visited her residence in Sharjah and claimed she did not deserve to stay there. He showed her a photo of his alleged bank statement claiming he had Dhs206,000 and would find her a hotel room in Al Barsha.

There, he took her mobile. She bought a new one as she did not want to end her relationship with him. He stole her credit card. He advised her to go to Jordan where the marriage ceremony would take place.

He booked her a ticket using the card. She travelled. He contacted her claiming he was an airline engineer and had to travel to Riyadh. He later claimed he ran over a man in Riyadh and had to pay for his treatment.

He later claimed his passport was confiscated and wanted money for it to be released. He later claimed he was detained at the airport in Jordan and slapped with fines. He claimed he had nothing to eat and dress.

She later sent him money to find a ticket to Dubai in addition to rent fees. He claimed he landed in bounced cheque cases. He cooked up stories and conned her out of more money that she kept borrowing from friends.