Dubai: A man was arrested by Ajman Police for allegedly recording and posting pictures and a video showing a crime scene where two Emirati men died, an official confirmed to Gulf News.
Maj. Mohammad Yafour Al Ghafli, deputy director of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at Ajman Police, said the arrest was made after a video started circulating on social media with the suspect being heard describing the sword fight that left two young Emiratis dead on Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road on Saturday.
Maj. Al Ghafli said police had identified and arrested the suspect an hour after the pictures and video were shared on social media.
The suspect, identified by police only by his initialls A.A.A., is a 27-year-old Gulf national.
Maj. Al Ghafli said the suspect had intentionally taken the video and pictures of police patrols at the crime scene while the officers were performing their duty.
The suspect’s voice could be clearly heard as he described the attack and the crime scene, in addition to the injuries.
The suspect was arrested on charges of misusing a device and disrespecting privacy of others, the official said.
Cybercrime Law and Privacy
The man will be prosecuted under the UAE Cybercrime Law No 5 of 2012, Article No. 21, which stipulates that a person “shall be punished by imprisonment of a period of at least six months and a fine not less than Dh150,000 and not exceeding Dh500,000 or either of these two penalties whoever uses a computer network and/or electronic information system or any information technology means for the invasion of privacy of another person in other than the cases allowed by the law...”
In addition, the cybercrime law makes it an offence to use any means of IT to breach someone else’s privacy, including taking pictures of others, or publishing or displaying those pictures.
Police advice
Major Al Ghafli offered the following advice to people on privacy laws:
* Do not share gruesome images on social media, posting pictures of accidents and victims a punishable offence.
* Sharing photos or videos of accident sites and victims through social media could get you into trouble.
* Sharing such images are considered irresponsible and disrespectful of the victims, and is punishable under UAE law.
* The publication of such images is unacceptable as it could cause psychological trauma to the victims’ family members. It violates UAE traditions and Islamic values, the officer said.
Maj. Al Ghafli calls on social media users to think twice before posting or reacting to risky content on social media.
He stressed that extra care needs to be taken when posting pictures of others online, including via social media sites.
