The photo has been used for illustrative purposes.

Ehab Atta, Staff Reporter

The Dubai Public Prosecution has referred an Arab PRO, 43, for trial on two charges, which are forging 26 commercial licences of a catering company that owns a restaurant chain, and the misdemeanour of corruption. The defendant reportedly used the forged documents to seize an amount of Dhs348,000, the Court heard on Monday.

According to the police records, a director at the company, who filed a complaint against the defendant, reported that the company was informed a year ago by a  delegate of the Department of Economic Development that the trade licence of a restaurant owned by the company had not been renewed.  That was shocking to the director who believed that the licence had been renewed and showed the delegate a copy of the renewed licence, but the DED reported that it was fake.

On reviewing validity of the other licences in the emirates, they were found also expired and had not been renewed as well, though he had provided the company with copies of the renewed licences.

The company’s lawyer has been notified and he interrogated the accused internally. The latter confirmed that he had renewed the licences and had proof of that, after which he was absent from work. Consequently, the lawyer lodged a companion with the police against the defendant and he was arrested.

In a separate incident, the Dubai Criminal Court on Monday charged nine Asians with importing drugs in two separate cases. In the first case, seven Asians were charged with importing 72 kilograms of drugs, and in the second, two Asians illegally imported psychotropic substances in the form of medicinal slices and 74,340 prazolam tablets for peddling by hiding them in a wooden container.

According to the official records of the first case, a prosecution witness, a customs officer, testified that he was on duty in Jebel Ali Port when he suspected a container coming from an Asian country and reportedly carrying auto spare parts. Intensive investigations showed that the importer used usually to bring foodstuffs from unsuspected countries but this shipment was under suspicion for reasons related to the exporter. The shipment was put under guard until the person concerned came.  The container was then inspected and the drugs were found hidden inside the auto spare parts.

In the second case, the prosecution witness, a Dubai Police officer, testified that Dubai Customs seized a huge quantity of narcotics in the form of pills hidden in a container. The clearing agent who would deliver the shipment to another emirate was summoned. He said two people would call him and tell him where to take the goods as soon as the shipment was cleared. The clearing agent was enabled to receive and transport the shipment and as soon as he arrived in the given place, an Asian came to arrange the process of unloading the container.