Man fined for possessing stolen curtains
Defendant claimed his 3 co-workers took curtains from workplace, asked him to keep them with him
Dubai: A man has been fined Dh5,000 for possessing Dh30,000 worth of stolen curtains after his three co-workers stole them from their workplace.
The Dubai Court of First Instance had earlier sentenced the three coworkers to three months in jail each followed by deportation.
When law enforcement officers recovered the stolen items from the flat of the 39-year-old Filipino man, R.A., the latter was accused of possessing stolen items and referred to court.
R.A. was said to have kept the curtains in his possession, which police seized from his home in February.
“My friend [one of the deportees] brought them home with him. He asked me to keep them in my possession … but I was not aware the curtains were stolen from the company where I worked,” R.A. argued before the court when he entered a not guilty plea.
Presiding judge Maher Salama Al Mahdi fined the defendant Dh5,000 for possessing the stolen curtains.
The company’s German manager testified that she told the police immediately after she discovered that Dh30,000 worth of curtains were missing.
Records said police interrogations led to the arrest of the three Filipino workers.
Records said R.A. was arrested shortly after police investigations revealed he was in possession of the curtains.
R.A. was cited admitting during prosecution questioning that his co-workers asked him to keep the curtains at his house (which he shared with one of the deportees).
“I was supposed to give them back as soon as I returned from my travels. But I couldn’t do so because I did not return as per schedule,” the defendant was quoted as saying.
The primary ruling remains subject to appeal within 13 days.
