(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) - Thefts and robberies at money exchange offices and banks dropped by 90 per cent in 2017, compared to the previous year, and financial crimes recorded by the Dubai Police are estimated to have amounted to around Dh497 million in the same year.
This was revealed during the third edition of the annual awareness training on security for banks, money exchanges and jewellery stores, organised by the Criminal Investigation Department, under the patronage of Major-General Abdulla Khalifa Al Marri, Commander-in-chief of the Dubai Police.
Major-General Khalil Ibrahim Al Mansouri, Assistant Commander-in-Chief of the Dubai Police for Criminal Investigation Affairs, stated that the rate of money exchange robberies dropped by 90 per cent, adding that none of the crimes on exchanges or banks were violent or resulted in death or injury. Even the recorded crimes at these places mainly fell into the category of minor offences committed by the customers.
The training forum, held on Wednesday in cooperation with a group of banking and financial institutions at the Dubai Police Officers Club in Garhoud, aimed to find intelligent and smart solutions to anticipate and prevent such crimes before they occur, in the future.
Maj-Gen Al Mansouri said that during the first quarter of 2018, only two crimes of local bank thefts were recorded. These involved the fraundsters robbing bank customers as they exited bank premises, catching them by surprise.
Tricky financial frauds Captain Ahmad Al Samahi, head of the Anti-Economic Crimes Department, reviewed some fraudulent cases dealt with by the Dubai Police. In the first case, a person deposited forged UAE dirhams and withdrew it from an ATM machine. However, a security official detected the forged currency and the suspect was arrested . The force also arrested a gang of four Asian scamsters who contacted people saying they had won cash prizes.
In another case, the police arrested a suspect who claimed to a woman he had never seen UAE currency money before, and when the woman (the complainant) opened her wallet with about Dh9,000 in it, he pretended to go through the notes just to see what they were like. Later, she found that she was missing Dh3,500 from her wallet and reported it.
An Egyptian, living in Saudi Arabia, lodged a complaint with the UAE police after buying some mobile phones online. He transferred the payments through an exchange office here but did not receive the phones. The police arrested the criminal, an African, who used a stolen ID belonging to an Asian. The exchange office involved told the police that the fraduster would visit them daily, to receive money from various countries.
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Osama Al Rahma, vice-president of the Foreign Exchange and Remittance Group (Ferg), pointed out that the biggest challenge faced by exchange offices today is electronic transformation.
Mohammed Al Ansari, chairman and director of Al Ansari Exchange, told Khaleej Times that the security challenges facing employees in the financial sector is a result of rapid electronic development, and that the Dubai Police forum is an important one in helping training their employees in curbing those crimes.
The forum's first session had discussed security procedures to be taken in case of suspected crimes, while the second session disused e- threats, precautions and security measures for the transfer of data and computer storage. Session three discussed the procedures for filing criminal cases in police stations; the fourth discussed fraud and forgery and session five discussed electronic crimes.
'What you cannot see, you cannot steal' On the sidelines of the security awareness training, a security exhibition organised by the Dubai Police showcased a range of security devices from Foguard.
Masood Ali, sales director of Foguard, said their security system products included the most advanced smoke generators in the world. It can be used to detect and delaying intruders from committing thefts. A simple smoke-activating mechanism works in these cases, filling the room with smoke within seconds, hiding the target and blurring the intruder's vision and hopefully confusing or scaring them into abandoning the theft.
Amira Agarib
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