Woman defrauded of Dhs30,000, Dubai court convicts two of cyber fraud

Two Asian nationals defrauded an Arab woman of Dhs30,000 by deceiving her with a fake online investment scheme.

The Dubai Misdemeanour and Violations Court convicted them and fined the first defendant Dhs3,000 in person and the second defendant Dhs3,000 in absentia.

They were also ordered to return the stolen funds. The Court of Appeal upheld the ruling.

Specifically, an Arab woman filed a report in December stating that she had been defrauded by someone who had contacted her via social media and offered her a job involving watching YouTube videos in exchange for money.

She added that, after accepting the offer, she initially received small sums of money. She was then asked to join a Telegram group to register her details. There, she was led to believe that she could invest her money in exchange for lucrative returns. During the investigation, the plaintiff explained that she had been given bank account details to transfer funds to. Hoping to make a profit, she transferred an estimated Dhs30,000 to the defendants' accounts. However, she did not receive any financial returns. She contacted the defendants to await the return on her investment. However, they turned off their phones, making her realise that she had been a victim of fraud. She filed a report with the relevant authorities, who initiated an investigation.

Investigations revealed that the two bank accounts to which the funds were transferred were held by the defendants. It was also found out that both defendants were aware that the funds were from an illegitimate source. The first defendant was arrested, but he did not provide any justification for the transfers or the funds in his account during the interrogation.

During the interrogation, a police officer stated that the plaintiff had sent messages to the defendant requesting her money. Bank statements showed that Dhs14,000 had been transferred to the defendant's account and Dhs16,000 to the second defendant's account.

During the court hearing, the defendant denied any involvement in the crime, claiming that he had previously lost his ID card without reporting it. However, the court did not find this convincing and issued the aforementioned ruling, which was upheld by the Court of Appeal.