Dubai: More surprises related to Deyaar’s former CEO surfaced in court on Sunday when a judge referred his case and an ex-minister to prosecutors to probe uninvestigated incidents following four years in deliberation.

In an unprecedented twist of events that startled the Dubai Court of First Instance’s packed courtroom, Presiding Judge Mohammad Jamal referred Deyaar’s graft case involving the 45-year-old American CEO, Z.S., and Emirati ex-minister, M.K., to the Public Funds Prosecution to look into some incidents that remained uninvestigated.

“Court proceedings and deliberations, lawyers’ defence and witnesses’ statements have exposed that a number of incidents involving different projects and incidents were left uninvestigated by prosecutors. This bench of judges cannot hand out a judgment if there were some incidents that were unquestioned and if there were certain charges that were unleveled against the defendants. Hence the court has decided to refer the case back to the prosecution as per article 17 of the Criminal Procedures Law. Prosecutors will have the jurisdictional power to either drop the case or process a new accusation sheet and refer the case to a different bench of judges,” according to yesterday’s decision.

A crowd of lawyers, legal advisors and attendees were very surprised when they heard the court decision especially that the court has been handling the case since 2009.

The former minister has been on bail since the case surfaced in court.

Meanwhile Z.S. spent more than four years in provisional detention until his release on bail on Thursday.

The American-Lebanese former CEO was not present in courtroom three when Presiding Judge Mohammad Jamal read out Sunday’s decision.

Z.S. and M.K., an ex-minister and a former chairman of Dubai Islamic Bank’s board of directors, for defrauding more than Dh57 million from Deyaar

The 54-year-old ex- minister strongly refuted his different charges of bribery, obtaining unlawful profit, damaging the country’s interests and appropriating public money (that of Deyaar).

Prosecutors accused M.K., who chaired Deyaar’s board then, with aiding, abetting and urging Z.S. in receiving bribe of six millions of Deyaar’s shares, 380,000 shares of Tamweel, 145,000 shares of DIB and Dh17.9 million against giving M.K. discounts and benefits worth Dh56.6 million from Deyaar.

M.K. and Z.S. denied all their charge as well.

In an earlier hearing, the Egyptian financial expert handed the court an additional detailed report concerning the alleged financial irregularities in the Deyaar corruption case.

M.M. testified earlier that Deyaar’s accrued damages reached Dh170 million.