Ex-convict sues Dubai Police Dh5m for physical torture

Dubai: An Armenian ex-convict is suing Dubai Police and seven jail wardens for Dh5 million in compensation for injuries he claims he incurred when the defendants allegedly tortured him while serving a sentence in 2007.

The Armenian claimant lodged, before the Dubai Civil Court, a civil lawsuit in which he accused the defendants of causing 10 per cent permanent disability in his back due to extensive and deliberate use of force and torture, during a search raid. The claimant, who recently returned to Dubai — since he was deported after serving an imprisonment in 2007 — is seeking Dh5 million in civil compensation against medical, emotional and financial damages.

The Dubai Civil Court yesterday adjourned the case until later this month for the defendants to submit their legal response.

Accused

In his civil lawsuit, the Armenian accused the General Headquarters of Dubai Police and seven jail wardens, including two officers, of being responsible for his injuries and damages which he claimed he incurred due to "extensive and gruesome use of force against inmates".

The claimant attached to his lawsuit several medical reports which confirmed that he sustained 10 per cent permanent disability in his spinal cord that made him unable to bend his back properly.

"During a search and inspection campaign inside the prison, one of the officers asked the jail wardens and anti-riots police to intentionally assault, terrorise and frighten me and other inmates with police dogs… after they emptied a number of cells, they beat all inmates.

"I was abusively beaten while running through the alleyway to the outer prison yard. One of the defendants pulled me back, threw me down to the floor and a number of wardens along him beat me hard with their arms and legs.

"Doctors fixed a metal chip in my spinal cord after a major back operation in Rashid Hospital," the claimant said in his lawsuit.

Last year, the Dubai Criminal Court of Appeal incriminated the seven policemen and 18 other jail wardens of abusing their authority and beating inmates.