Saleswoman jailed 6 months and faces deprotation for embezzling Dh100,000 from boss

Dubai: A saleswoman will be jailed for six months for defrauding her employer of more than Dh100,000, a court ruled recently.

The Dubai Court of First Instance convicted the 26-year-old Filipina saleswoman of fraud, forgery, embezzlement and breach of trust.

The jury said the accused, E.M., will be deported after serving the primary sentence, which is still subject to appeal.

"No I am not guilty and I didn't commit forgery," said E.M. when she defended herself in court.

Prosecutors charged the defendant with tampering with dates on a Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) bill and using the forged bill to swindle her Dutch employer.

According to the arraignment sheet, E.M. was charged with falsifying the dates on a Dewa bill and tricking her employer, S.R., into believing that she had paid the telephone and electricity bills for October instead of November.

She was also charged with breach of trust for swindling more than Dh100,000 from her boss.

Advocate Saeed Al Gailani, representing S.R., said his client was seeking Dh21,000 in temporary compensation for financial damages. The judge referred the civil compensation claim to the Dubai Civil Court.

"No… I didn't do that," said the Filipina when she denied the charges and pleaded innocence.

The Dutch sponsor testified that the accused had breached her trust and swindled from the shop where the latter worked as sales supervisor.

"E.M. used to supervise the shop during my absence. She was assigned to collect the revenues and put them in the register. I also used to give her cash to pay the Dewa bills. After we discovered her embezzlement and swindling, she signed a written confession admitting that she misappropriated more than Dh100,000," claimed S.R. in her statement.

The woman boss testified that E.M. used to collect the money from customers, keep the profit for herself and use the shop's credit card to pay for purchased items.