Dubai: A Filipina housemaid has been acquitted of stealing Dh10,000 from her employer after she pleaded innocent in court and accused her sponsor of not paying her salary.
The Dubai Court of First Instance acquitted the 27-year-old housemaid, I.F., of stealing from her Emirati sponsor for lack of corroborated evidence and groundless accusation.
When the Filipina appeared before Presiding Judge Fahmi Mounir, she pleaded not guilty and dismissed her accusations. She complained that she was not paid her salary for three months and denied the theft.
The Public Prosecution charged the Filipina with stealing Dh10,000 from her sponsor, F.A., taking advantage of his absence.
F.A. testified that the housemaid absconded from his house while he was at work. "I reported [to] the Department of Residency and Foreigners' Affairs in Dubai that my housemaid absconded … a few days later I discovered that my money was missing.
"My second housemaid also notified me that somebody took her Dh100. We also discovered that some of my children's clothes were also missing. Two and a half weeks later, the Philippines Embassy asked me to hand them I.F.'s passport.
"The Department of Residency and Foreigners' Affairs also asked me to return her passport… but I refused because I had already taken legal action," alleged F.A.
The primary verdict is still subject to appeal within 13 days.
