Dubai: Two men have been arrested after allegedly using an Indian tourist’s credit card left behind in a Dubai rental car, police said.
The Pakistani suspects were arrested after the tourist complained, in an e-mail sent from India to Dubai Police, that his lost credit card was used in the UAE for shopping worth Dh17,000.
Colonel Mohammad Rashid Bin Saree Al Muhairi, director of tourism security at the Criminal and Investigation Department (CID) of Dubai Police, said investigations revealed Pakistani M.K.A., a Ras Al Khaimah resident, had allegedly used the card.
He added that the accused admitted his crime, saying he used the victim’s credit card with the help of another Pakistani, identified as P.K. H., a Dubai resident. The second suspect was also arrested.
Colonel Al Muhairi said M.K.A. used to drive the victim around in a rental car for Dh150 per day. “The suspects told police that they used the credit card to buy items from different shopping malls until it was rejected by the ATM machine when they entered the pin code incorrectly,” he said.
In another incident, the tourism security department managed to return the money of a tourist who was allegedly defrauded by a cash counter staffer, the colonel added.
In an e-mail to Dubai Police sent from outside the UAE, the tourist said the employee had lied to him that his card payment transaction had been rejected, which prompted him to pay cash. He later found out that the transaction had gone through, according to the e-mail.
“We managed to help the tourist get his money back from the bank.”
There are hundreds of complaints from tourists each year, but almost all of them are resolved amicably, with very few cases referred to the prosecution, added Colonel Al Muhairi.
