Dubai: Gang Jailed, Fined Dh541,000 For Stealing Nearly 500 Phones From Store

A criminal court in Dubai has sentenced six Asian men for stealing 496 smartphones from an electronics shop in Naif. The court also handed down one-year jail term for each of them plus a collective fine of Dh541,000, equivalent to the value of the stolen items .

Four of the defendants were tried and sentenced in person, while two others were convicted in absentia. The court also ordered their deportation after serving their sentences.

The case dates back to January this year, when the shop owner filed a complaint after receiving a call from a neighbouring shopkeeper, alerting him that the store's front door had been vandalised and the locks smashed.

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When the owner arrived, he discovered that nearly 500 newly purchased mobile phones had been stolen. Security camera footage revealed one of the suspects entering the store, inspecting the shelves, and collecting phones into a bag while others waited outside. The group then fled in a taxi.

The authorities were able to identify and apprehend four suspects. A raid on one of their homes led to the recovery of 236 mobile phones.

One of the suspects admitted that the seized phones were part of the stolen shipment. Others confessed they carried out the break-in with the help of a fugitive accomplice who informed them that the shop had received a shipment worth more than Dh500,000 .

All six men were convicted of theft. The Dubai Criminal Court issued its ruling with a one-year sentence and financial penalties, followed by mandatory deportation.

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