Dubai: Lieutenant-General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, who died on Thursday night was an illustrious officer whose career in the force spanned three decades and held various key positions in the department.
When he was appointed General Commander of the Dubai Police on November 23, 2013, he took it as a badge of honour and saw it as a chance to serve his country. “Maintaining safety and security in Dubai is my top priority,” he had said after taking charge of the police force.
Born in a well-known Emirati family in the Al Ras area of Deira in 1961, Lt-General Al Mazeina was educated in Dubai. His former family home has been turned into Al Ahmadiya School. He has three children — one son and two daughters. He graduated from the UAE University with a degree in social sciences and attended several training courses abroad in criminology and criminal investigation.
In 1992, he worked as an officer in the Anti-Narcotics Section, which at that time was part of CID (Criminal Investigation Department). In 1997, he became the director of the criminal investigation section, and remained so until 2004, when he was appointed the director of CID. He was then deputy chief of Dubai Police from 2008 to 2013.
In 2008, Lt-General Al Mazeina was appointed deputy commander of the force through a decree issued by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. In November 2013, he became the General Commander of Dubai Police, succeeding Lieutenant-General Dahi Khalfan Tamim.
Lt-General Al Mazeina’s career with the police has spanned 33 years. Well known for his high professionalism, he was known for outstanding accomplishments in the field of police, security and criminal investigation.
Under his leadership, Dubai Police embraced modern technology to improve policing, Last year, he announced the trial of body cameras for police officers and in October, he announced a new safety innovation centre to test new technologies, including augmented reality, facial recognition software, video analysis and devices to track and disable disrupting drones.
He was closely involved in the investigation of several high-profile cases, including the Wafi Mall heist in 2009, the assassination of a Hamas leader in Dubai in 2010 and the murder of Lebanese singer Suzan Tamim in 2008. In September this year, he led the investigation into the sensational murder of a Filipina whose headless body was found in a desert area in Al Warqa’a on Academic City Road. Earlier in May, he led the investigation into the rape and murder of a Jordanian boy who was kidnapped from Sharjah.
Illustrious career
June 13, 1983: Joined the Dubai Police
1993: Became an officer at the anti-narcotics section of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID)
1997: Appointed head of Criminal Investigation section
2000: Appointed Director of the CID
2008: Appointed Deputy Police Chief
2013: Appointed Dubai Police Chief
