Dubai: The Dubai Appeal Court has upheld a one-month imprisonment against two Dubai Police ranking officers and three policemen for unlawfully locking up a detainee who later died in detention.

The appellate court confirmed that the two Emirati officers, a lieutenant colonel and a second lieutenant, and three officers are guilty of locking up the Pakistani detainee, B.K., without legal grounds.

Presiding Judge Eisa Al Sharif upheld the innocence of the five defendants and eight other policemen. According to Sunday’s appellate judgment, the 13 policemen were cleared of torture and extensive beatings during an interrogation which allegedly led to B.K.’s death and two other detainees being injured.

The appellate court also dismissed the civil lawsuit lodged by one of the injured detainees.

The suspects’ advocates Eisa Bin Haider and Ali Musabeh Dahi argued that prosecutors and a forensic doctor had provided the court with inconclusive reports.

Charges of torture, forgery

The 13 Dubai Police officers refuted accusations of torture, extensive beatings during an interrogation, forgery and other charges.

The appellate judgment remains subject to appeal before the Cassation Court within 30 days.

A court source told Gulf News that the five defendants, who were convicted of illegally detaining B.K., will have to turn themselves in to undergo their punishments.

According to the primary verdict, the injured suspects gave contradicting and inconsistent statements.

“One of the claimants [M.S.] said during police questioning that he was tortured and beaten, then he contradicted his statement before prosecutors when he failed to corroborate his earlier statement. He claimed to prosecutors that he suffered memory weakness, lack of concentration and forgetfulness and could not give a statement,” read the judgment sheet.

Forensic report

Advocates Bin Haider and Dahi argued that the forensic doctor, who carried out an autopsy on B.K., submitted a groundless and indecisive report and his findings were insufficient.

“Prosecutors carried out an indistinct investigation...the main incident in this case was that B.K. and the injured detainees, S.H. and M.S., had kidnapped a victim and killed him in Ajman. B.K. was brought from Oman and he died 20 minutes after he entered the police station. B.K. was beaten in Oman,” said Bin Haider.

“We strongly deny that our clients used WD-40 against M.S. We provide the court with a WD-40 substance and a users’ manual that only warns users to keep it away from sensitive parts like the eyes or the face,” contended Dahi.