The photo has been used for illustrative purposes.

Hamza M Sengendo, Staff Reporter

Four compatriot workers who wore masks and gloves to storm a Dubai company warehouse and search for valuables have convinced the Dubai Appeals Court to lessen their punishment.

The Asian employee, carpenter and two company agents used a crowbar to break into a building materials company warehouse. They smashed its door lock at around 3:30 on Dec.21, according to investigation records.

They used a stick to push a surveillance camera to make it face upwards. They started combing the warehouse for valuables until they landed on Dhs11,000 inside a drawer in one of the offices. They decamped with it.

Prosecutors referred them to the Criminal Court on Mar.17 and sought the toughest punishment. The court jailed them for one year plus deportation. They sought mercy. The Appeals Court has cut the tem to six months.

The 48-year-old Indian manager of the targeted warehouse in Al Quoz Industrial Area told prosecutors that one of the company’s employees who arrived in the morning found the lock smashed and the door open.

“We discovered Dhs11,000 was stolen from an office drawer. Surveillance camera footage showed intruders breaking in and committing the robbery. They found the office door and its drawer open,” he revealed.

An Emirati police corporal explained, “The footage showed two culprits wearing masks and gloves forcing their way into the warehouse through its hind emergency exit door. One of them used a stick to lift the camera.

“The other used his mobile phone’s torch to light up the place and comb for valuables. A source revealed the quartet were implicated. He directed us to their residence in Jebel Ali. At the Criminal Investigations Department, they all confessed and said they shared the proceeds.”

They directed cops to the warehouse in question. During prosecution questioning, they reportedly confessed and revealed that the employee and the first agent proposed the robbery and were the ones who broke in and robbed while the others watched the situation.