Fake sleuths decamp with Dhs3.6m

Hamza M Sengendo, Staff Reporter

DUBAI: A fake detective and his cohort kidnapped two men from a street and stole their Dhs3.6m. They were sued on Tuesday with five men who abetted the heist.

The Arab defendant, 39, and his colleague, 36, kidnapped a Pakistani driver, 49, and his compatriot friend, 32, claiming police circulars were issued against them over ‘suspicious money’ they were carrying, the Criminal Court heard.

They stole Dhs3, 580, 725 and $1, 000. The colleague battered two corporals during arrest.  Five Asians were the ones who incited both Arabs and identified the victims to them, records showed. The seven refuted charges. The court adjourned the hearing till April 2 for the defence.

In police and prosecution records, the driver complained he was in Frij Murar with a bag hanging on his shoulder when the defendant and his colleague arrived in an Abu Dhabi-registered Land Cruiser. They stepped out and claimed to be detectives. “The defendant flashed a card and ordered me to get inside the vehicle. He started driving. On the way, someone contacted telling them there was another man to catch as well.

“They returned to the same place. The defendant stopped by my friend, stepped out and brought him inside the vehicle. They later dropped him in Naif  after taking the money he was carrying,” said the driver.

“They told him they were CID policemen commissioned to confiscate the money and verify its source as a case was filed at Bani Yas Police Station (Abu Dhabi) about the money. The defendant sped off.

“They later dropped me in Jebel Ali after taking the money I had. I and my friend went to the said police station to seek clarification. Police told us imposters lied to us, there was no such case.

The friend said, “I was with the driver when I entered a grocery after telling him to wait for me there. I returned and found him missing. The defendant and his colleague came, posed as cops and took me inside their vehicle.

“I realised the driver was also inside. They demanded me to hand them the bag of money and alleged they were from the CID tasked with investigating the source. They dropped me in Naif.”

Two Emirati corporals narrated they were dispatched to apprehend the defendant’s colleague. They identified themselves to him but he resisted and assaulted them while trying to escape. However, they subdued and detained him.