Dubai: A worker landed himself and his brother in trouble when he hid at his place after breaking a safe at his workplace and stealing Dh379,000.
The 36-year-old Bangladeshi worker, M.N., was said to have walked into his workplace after 9pm, broken open a safe and stolen Dh379,000 in different currencies. He then went to hide at the house of his older brother, 46-year-old M.E., in May.
A Filipina cleaner was the first to discover the theft, according to records, and informed her Syrian manager who instantly reported the matter to the police.
Law enforcement officers identified M.N., who was revealed on the company’s surveillance camera entering the premises empty-handed at 9pm and walking out carrying a bag at 2am.
Prosecutors accused M.N. of theft and M.E. of possessing part of the stolen cash.
The younger suspect pleaded guilty when he appeared before the Dubai Court of First Instance on Sunday.
The elder brother pleaded not guilty.
According to the charge sheet, prosecutors said M.N. abused the fact that he had a copy of the company’s keys and sneaked inside at night, opened the safe with a crowbar and a screwdriver and stole the cash. M.E. possessed part of the stolen cash without participating in the theft.
“I stole the cash but it was Dh100,000 only and not as mentioned in the papers,” the 36-year-old suspect told presiding judge Mohammad Jamal.
The 46-year-old suspect contended that he did not know that the money was stolen.
The company’s Syrian manager claimed to prosecutors that the Filipina cleaner informed him at 7.30am that she saw a broken safe.
“She told me the company’s offices had been turned upside down and someone had stolen cash from the safe that she found open. I rushed to the premises and discovered that someone had used hard tools to break the safe and steal the cash. The culprit took four envelopes that contained cash … then we informed the police,” he testified to prosecutors.
A police lieutenant claimed to prosecutors that the theft happened in the company’s warehouse in Al Khubaisi area.
“M.N. was spotted on CCTV walking into the company at 9pm and he walked out at 2am … he was shown carrying something in his hands. Primary interrogations revealed that the two suspects were involved in the theft and were present in Al Ain and they were arrested nearly three weeks after that. We seized from M.E. part of the stolen cash and a money transfer receipt for Dh93,000 that had been wired to Bangladesh. M.N. claimed during questioning that following the theft he went by taxi to Al Ain where he met his brother who kept part of the money with him,” the lieutenant testified to prosecutors.
A ruling will be heard on December 13.
