Two held for exporting mortgaged, leased cars

Dubai: Two men have been arrested by Dubai Police for allegedly exporting mortgaged and rented cars with forged documents.

A Dubai Police source said that the men arrested last week were two Arab brothers who worked for a car showroom in Dubai. They were arrested for exporting luxury cars with forged documents.

Police said the Syrian brothers, identified as A. and M., were accused of exporting mortgaged cars which had been sold to them at low prices by owners who had left the country without informing the banks.

Dubai Police said they recovered 15 cars while the suspects had exported several more with forged documents. This could have brought the total to more than 20 cars, said Major Saeed Al Ayalli, Acting Director of the Criminal Investigations Division of Dubai Police.

Five of the cars were found in a cargo shipment at the port in Dubai. Police said the suspects also allegedly exported rented cars.

"The cars were exported to Iraq and Yemen," police said.

Interrogation

The brother identified as M. was arrested first and interrogated at Dubai Criminal and Investigation Department, Maj Al Ayalli said.

"The other brother, identified as A., was arrested later at his house in Sharjah," police said. Police said they found 10 stolen cars parked under the building where A. lived.

They also said that A. had admitted that some of the cars were rented, some others were mortgaged, and that one was a stolen vehicle.

Police also said they interrogated two other men serving their terms at Al Aweer Central jail regarding the case.

"The case is still under investigations and many details are yet to be revealed," Maj Al Ayalli said.

Police said the owner of the showroom, who is also Syrian, was in jail, serving three years to be followed by deportation, for forgery. He was questioned by police about his involvement in this latest case.

Police said a Yemeni man who was in jail for car theft, had also been questioned about the stolen car. Both men denied any connection with the case.

Police said the case had been transferred to public prosecutor for further investigation and added that M. was recently released on bail. Brigadier Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri, Director of the General Department of Criminal Investigations Department, said a meeting had taken place with the Roads and Transportation Authority (RTA) to finalise new strategies to protect rented cars.

"Dubai Police will not tolerate shops that copy cars keys without proving the rightful owner of the vehicles. Some suspects are renting cars and make a copy of the car key before returning the car to the shop. They later come back to steal the cars," he said.