8-month jail for ex-employee for bid to extort Dh1.2m from Dubai corporation

dubai — A legal consultant, accused of blackmailing a renewable energy services corporation he worked for in extortion bid of Dh1.2 million via e-mails, was sentenced to eight months in jail by a Dubai court on Monday.

Public prosecution records show the 41-year-old French legal consultant sent the complainant, a Greek legal advisor, e-mails in which he gave the corporation an ultimatum to drop their complaint and settle his status and pay up his gratuity. Otherwise, he threatened to send his letter to many parties and make sure their business would get hit. He also logged into the e-system of his workplace and unlawfully copied contracts and draft contracts.

The Court of First Instance convicted him in absentia of charges of online blackmail, gaining unlawful access into an e-system and copying data and information without authorisation. It also ordered his deportation.

The court also ruled that the defendant pay Dh21,000 in temporary civil damages to the plaintiff.

The defendant’s threats lasted from April 23 to August 24 and the complaint was filed at the Bur Dubai police station.

The legal advisor, 36, said during prosecution investigation, that the defendant called for a meeting on April 22 to discuss administrative corruption at work. “During the meeting, he claimed the

plaintiff was paying bribes to other businesses to land project contracts and win tender bids. When asked whether he had proof to prove his claims, he got angry and destroyed a laptop.”

The meeting was then ended. The police were informed and a complaint was filed against the defendant.

“On April 23, we asked the IT section to access the defendant’s work mail. We then found he had sent confidential documents (draft contracts) to his personal email. On April 24, I received an e-mail from him, in which he was asking for large amounts of money, and for the company to drop a property damage complaint and to release his passport,” the advisor recounted.

He added that the defendant threatened them that if his demands were not met, he would then tell their business partners and clients that the corporation was corrupt.

“On April 25, we were informed by our clients that they received such mails from the accused,” the advisor said, pointing out that the accused wanted them, in another e-mail, to pay him a Dh1.2 million gratuity and another Dh150,000, or he would present documents to the police stating that the corporation was paying bribes to obtain business contracts.

I received an e-mail from him, in which he was asking for large amounts of money.”

The complainant,

legal advisor