WhatsApp message helps recover Dh500,000 seized by fraudulent investor

The Abu Dhabi Court for Family, Civil and Administrative Claims has ordered an investor to pay a trader Dh500,000, which he had taken under the pretense of investing and returning with profits, but later evaded repayment.

The court based its ruling on messages exchanged between the claimant and the defendant via the WhatsApp application.

The trader had filed a lawsuit demanding Dh500,000 plus legal interest at 12%, along with court fees, expenses, and attorney’s fees. He argued that the defendant deceived him with a false investment scheme, requesting funds under the promise of repayment with profit, but failed to return the money without justification. The claimant supported his case with copies of WhatsApp messages exchanged between the two parties. The defendant, however, did not appear before the court despite being duly notified.

The court clarified that, under the provisions of the Electronic Transactions Law, “an electronic document does not lose its legal validity or enforceability merely because it is in electronic form, nor do the data contained therein lose their legal validity as long as the details can be accessed.” In its reasoning, the court noted that the submitted records confirmed the defendant’s acknowledgment of the sums in question and that he had not denied the debt, nor repaid it.

Furthermore, the court pointed out that the defendant failed to attend the hearings or submit any evidence or arguments to dispute the claimant’s assertions or prove his release from liability. Therefore, the court deemed him legally bound to settle the debt. Accordingly, it ruled that the defendant must pay the claimant Dh500,000, in addition to court fees and expenses, while rejecting all other claims.