Sharjah: Sharjah Police have arrested an Arab man who duped several people in the UAE and abroad of Dh110 million by claiming that he would invest their money in iron scrap business for huge profits, officials said on Saturday.
The Arab man, identified as A.S.A, managed to con at least 25 people who lodged complaints against him.
Major Abdullah Sulaiman Al Mleeh, Director of the Criminal Investigation Department in the Sharjah Central Region police, said the suspect impressed his victims by wearing stylish clothes and talking like a rich businessman.
“He was professional in gaining the victims’ trust and convincing them to hand over their money to him in order to invest in iron waste business. He was like the hustler who sold Eiffel Tower in the last century,” Major Al Mleeh said.
Police said he used to convince iron waste merchants in the UAE to export iron from a country in the Middle East to a Gulf country. He used to take their money and then disappear.
The police discovered that the suspect was an international fraudster and is wanted by the Interpol in many cases in other countries.
After intensive investigation and search, Sharjah Police identified the suspect and arrested him in a sting operation.
Colonel Ahmad Bin Darwish, Director of Sharjah Central Region police, said the suspect confessed to the allegations and was referred to the prosecution.
Colonel Bin Darwish said: “He was an expert in such crimes and used to appear like a big businessman.”
Colonel Bin Darwish asked the merchants and individuals willing to invest their money to be careful and use the safe and legal channels so that they do end up being victims of such hustlers.
