Dubai court overturns deportation for scooter theft convict

Dubai: The Dubai Court of Appeal has overturned the deportation of an Asian defendant convicted of stealing an electric scooter, while upholding a lower court’s ruling that sentenced him to one month in jail and a fine of Dh700.

The case dates back to March, when an Arab man reported his electric scooter missing after parking it in a designated area near his workplace in Dubai Silicon Oasis. 

He told investigators that he routinely commuted between his home and job on the scooter, which he always left in the same spot. 

When it disappeared, he initially thought he had misplaced it, but after searching the area realized it had been stolen and alerted police.

A police officer testified that investigators collected evidence from the scene and reviewed surveillance footage, which showed the defendant leaving a fast food restaurant and using a tool to break the scooter’s lock before fleeing. 

The man was later arrested and confessed to the theft.

The criminal court convicted him and handed down the prison term and fine, but also ordered his deportation. 

The appellate judges upheld the sentence but rescinded the deportation order, allowing the prison term and financial penalty to stand as final punishment.