Dubai: Two salesmen have been acquitted of stealing a diamond ring worth Dh1.36 million from a renowned jewellery shop in BurJuman due to uncorroborated evidence.
The Dubai Court of First Instance cleared the Syrian salesmen, 32-year-old P.R., and 31-year-old M.H., after they pleaded not guilty and denied the charge of stealing the 8.4-carat diamond ring.
P.R.'s lawyer Obaid Ali Obaid argued that his client was innocent. "The accusation is baseless and groundless. My client is the one who discovered the theft and reported it to his boss at the jewellery shop," Obaid told the court earlier.
Judge Fahmi Mounir acquitted the defendants for lack of evidence.
Prosecutors alleged that the duo took advantage of their position in the shop to steal the ring.
The court also rejected the civil compensation claim lodged by the jeweller.
A 31-year-old Syrian goldsmith testified that P.R. informed him that the diamond ring was missing from the safe of the jewellery shop.
"I was in charge of the sales and finances. We searched for the ring and when we didn't find it we alerted the police. Preliminary interrogations revealed that the surveillance cameras were not functioning at the time when the ring disappeared. Suspicions surrounded the two suspects following the police investigation," said the goldsmith.
Countering that evidence in court, Obaid also submitted, as part of his defence, photos proving that his client did not steal the ring.
The primary judgment is still subject to appeal within 13 days.
