Dubai Court upholds ruling on Dh30,000 online investment scam

Dubai: The Dubai Court of Appeal has upheld previous rulings against two expatriates, a man and a woman convicted of online fraud for deceiving a woman out of Dh30,000 through a fake digital investment scheme, Al Khaleej Arabic daily reported.

The Dubai Misdemeanour Court had earlier fined the man in person and the woman in absentia Dh3,000 each, while also ordering both to return the full amount obtained through the scam.

According to court documents, the victim, an Arab woman, filed a complaint last December after being contacted on social media by an unknown individual offering a side job: watching YouTube videos for money. After initially receiving small payments, she was asked to join a Telegram group and provide her banking information under the pretext of investing her funds for high returns.

The woman transferred total Dh30,000 to the defendants’ accounts but never received the promised profits. When she tried to follow up, the suspects blocked her, prompting her to report the crime to authorities.

Investigations revealed that both bank accounts belonged to the defendants, who were aware of the illegality of the funds. One of the defendants was arrested and failed to justify the transfers. Bank statements and messages from the two defendants confirmed the transfers: Dh14,000 to the man and Dh16,000 to the woman.

During the trial, the defendant denied involvement, claiming he had lost his ID card previously and had not reported it. The court rejected this defence, convicted both defendants, and the Court of Appeal later upheld the ruling.