Eight men get 3-year jail terms for Dh3.6m heist

Culprits lured 3 workers to hotel to exchange $1m and threatened, beat and robbed them

Eight men have been jailed for three years each for luring three employees of money exchange houses to a hotel to exchange $1 million (Dh3.67 million) and stealing the equivalent amount in dirhams. The three employees, from two different money exchange houses, were contacted by a Jordanian businessman who wanted to convert $1 million to dirhams in February.

The Indian employees communicated between each other and arranged Dh3.6 million that was meant to be handed over in exchange for the $1 million to the businessman at a hotel room in Deira. Four Africans showed up at the hotel room where the employees were present, assaulted, tied up and threatened them with knives and absconded with Dh3.6 million.

The victims called the police immediately and gave details about a Cameroonian man, who had driven the other four robbers to the hotel in a car.

The eight culprits, six Cameroonians and two Malians, were identified and apprehended one at a time within a few days after the incident.

In May, the Dubai Court of First Instance convicted the defendants of beating the Indian employees, tying them with ropes, stealing their cash, threatening them with sharp tools and possession of the stolen millions.

The appellate ruling remains subject to appeal before the Cassation Court within 25 days.