Transit passenger goes on a Dh71K shopping spree with stolen cards

We found it was the accused who made those purchases, after which he travelled to Johannesburg on business class with a Dh13,012 ticket he bought with the same card.”

dubai — A man has been charged at a Dubai court after he allegedly used another man’s boarding pass and made purchases worth Dh71,198 with stolen credit cards at the Dubai Duty Free.

The Court of First Instance heard how the 30-year-old South African man, who was on a transit stop at the Dubai International Airport, showed a boarding pass belonging to another person to the Duty Free staff to purchase with two stolen credit cards on August 20.

Prosecutors accused him of making purchases worth Dh71,198 with the stolen cards. He misappropriated the credit cards after finding a wallet in a plane. He has been charged with misusing a boarding pass, unlawful use of credit cards, fraud and misappropriation of a lost property.

When interrogated by the public prosecution, the tourist said he was travelling from South Africa to Kuala Lumpur via Dubai. “I was the last to exit the plane and I saw a wallet left behind on a seat. I took it and went to the Duty Free. I purchased a smartphone, a laptop, a bag and other valuable stuff with two credit cards I found in that wallet.”

He suddenly panicked and decided to return to his home country and cancel his flight to Kuala

An airline security officer

Lumpur. He bought a travel ticket on business class at Dh13,012 with one of the stolen cards.

He was caught on September 29, when he arrived at the Dubai airport as a transit passenger on his way to Istanbul. He confessed to the investigators that he used the stolen cards and a boarding pass belonging to another traveller.

An airline security officer said they received an e-mail on September 18 from an American woman informing them that she had lost a credit card and it was used about 18 times to make purchases worth Dh71,198.

“We found it was the accused who made those purchases, after which he travelled to Johannesburg on business class with a Dh13,012 ticket he bought with the same card.”

He confessed he bought jewellery and two watches among other items. The court will issue a verdict on December 30.