Fake gas dealer burned in palm farm inferno

Hamza M Sengendo, Staff Reporter

An unlicensed cooking gas dealer escaped with burns after gas cylinders exploded setting a palm tree farm ablaze. He and his accomplice landed in court on Tuesday.

The Asian salesman, 39, and a compatriot labourer, 37, with the help of a forger duplicated stickers of a Dubai government gas company and fixed them on valves of cylinders refilled with gas from Ajman until June.

They loaded and hazardously transported the gas cylinders in a minibus driven by the labourer for sale. They also put people’s lives at risk by filling cylinders in a substandard way, some cylinders were overfilled.

As a result of their misconduct, they were refiling a cylinder when it exploded and caused a blaze in the palm farm belonging to orphans of an Arab man in Al Aweer area. They were illicitly dealing with 112 cylinders.

Investigations revealed the initial explosion sparked several gas cylinder explosions. At the Dubai Criminal Court, they confessed to all charges but denied having burnt down the farm. The ruling will be on October 22.

On the record, an Emirati warrant officer narrated that on June 3 police was alerted about multiple explosions of gas cylinders inside the farm. The complainant said she had rented a room in the farm to the labourer.

“Investigations revealed he was staying there with other people. We arrested him in Hor Al Anz area and also arrested the salesman who had injuries and burns all over his arms and legs,” explained the officer.

“During interrogations, both confessed to have possessed gas cylinders without a licence. They said they would buy cylinders from a company in Ajman, take them to the farm and transfer the gas to Dubai cylinders.”

They would resell the gas for profit. They were refiling a cylinder when a leak sparked a fire on another. They dashed through the farm. It exploded. The blaze saw others exploding, flying and rolling out of the farm.