Dubai: A worker who lost his appeal, will be jailed for a year for stealing a bicycle that was locked at the racks of a metro station and selling it for Dh150.
The 34-year-old Pakistani worker and his 32-year-old countryman used iron scissors to cut the locks of the Filipino’s bicycle and later sold it in Sharjah in April.
In October, the Dubai Court of First Instance convicted the two men of theft and cutting the bicycle’s lock.
The 32-year-old defendant was sentenced in absentia.
The 34-year-old defendant appealed the primary judgement and pleaded innocent when he appeared before the Dubai Appeal Court.
Presiding judge Saeed Salem Bin Sarm rejected the defendant’s appeal and upheld his one-year imprisonment.
The accused will be deported after serving his sentence.
The Filipino told prosecutors that he locked his bicycle at one of the metro stations on Shaikh Zayed Road’s at 10am. “When I returned from work at 3pm, I found that my bicycle had been stolen,” he said.
The surveillance cameras installed beside the metro station helped identify the duo, said a police sergeant. “The 34-year-old defendant cut the lock and stole the bicycle while his partner kept a lookout for him."
"We monitored the spot for around a month until the defendants returned there on May 18. They were standing beside the bicycle racks at 4pm and it seemed they were waiting for an opportunity to steal another bicycle, when we took them into custody and found a small iron scissors in their possession. During questioning, the 34-year-old admitted that he used to cut locks and steal bicycles while the 32-year-old would keep a watch. They were used to sell these bicycles for Dh150 each in Sharjah,” testified the sergeant.
The ruling remains subject to appeal before the Cassation Court within 22 days.
