(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Two men, who defrauded an Italian businessman of Dh1.9 million, were each sentenced to three years in jail on Tuesday.
The Court of First Instance heard the Emirati man, 27, and his 33-year-old Italian accomplice, forged purchase orders of desalination equipment and falsely claimed them to be issued from the Dubai customs.
They swindled the complainant after showing him the forged papers and lying about him winning tender bids.
The court found them guilty of charges of fraud, embezzlement, forgery and use of forged documents and ordered the deportation of the Italian accused. They did not attend the first hearing of their trial. The court also ordered confiscation of the forged documents.
The case dates back to January 9 and was registered at Bur Dubai police station.
The complainant, 69, said that he had a project of investing in electronic equipment for desalination.
"I got in touch with the Italian defendant and he set a meeting with the first accused. The latter claimed he could help me win tender bids worth millions of dirhams."
They reached an agreement in which the pair would get a certain commission.
"I began sending the Italian defendant money after he sent me e-mails pertaining to my project, including desalination equipment purchase orders worth Dh455million for Dubai Free Zone and Dubai airports," the businessman recounted during public prosecution investigation.
He told the prosecutor that he wired the pair a total of Dh1.9 million. "I wanted them to get me official documents that the project was in my name. But they e-mailed me forged purchase orders and fake bank statements of account in the first defendant's name," the complainant said.
A letter from the Dubai Customs denied that the purchase orders used by the duo were issued from them.
The defendants can appeal the court ruling within 15 days.
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