Dubai court rejects Sanjay Shah's final appeal against deportation to Denmark

British citizen, who lived in Dubai, denies charges and says he was operating within Danish law

Sanjay Shah, 52, a hedge fund trader who lived on The Palm Jumeirah, was arrested by Dubai Police last year. Antonie Robertson / The National

A Dubai court has ruled that hedge fund trader Sanjay Shah will be extradited to Denmark for prosecution over an alleged $1.7 billion tax fraud.

Mr Shah, a British citizen who lived on The Palm Jumeirah, is accused of being the central player in a scheme in which foreign businesses pretended to own shares in Danish companies and claimed tax refunds for which they were not eligible.

Mr Shah has previously denied the charges and said he was operating within Danish law.

An international warrant for his arrest was received by Dubai Police on January 7 and he was arrested five months later in the emirate's Al Rafaa district.

The arrest came after the signing of an extradition agreement between the UAE and Denmark in March last year.

Attorney General Essam Al Humaidan said the Dubai Court of Cassation has rejected Mr Shah's appeal, according to the emirate's media office.

The Court of Cassation upheld a ruling by the emirate's Court of Appeal to grant Denmark’s request for Mr Shah's extradition, he said.

Mr Shah's lawyer, Ali Al Zarouni, said his client was considering filing an appeal to the chief justice of Court of Cassation.

“Although we are not content with the verdict, this is law,” Mr Al Zarouni told The National.

“However, there is a possibility that we submit an application to the chief justice of the Dubai Court of Cassation to request reconsidering the case.

“But this application would not halt extradition procedures which are now pending approval of the UAE’s minister of justice."

In a statement to Reuters, Danish Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said: "We as a society can now send a clear signal to this type of criminal in a suit that no hiding place is safe, no matter where in the world you are."

In September, Dubai Court of Appeal refused Denmark’s request for the extradition of Mr Shah because of a lack of original official documentation.

Mr Al Humaidan, as attorney general, appealed against this ruling, which allowed Mr Shah to remain in the emirate.

In the same month, judges in Dubai presiding over a civil lawsuit filed by the Danish government ruled that Mr Shah must repay $1.25 billion to the Danish state.

Dubai Court of Cassation, the top court in the emirate's three-tier system, in October referred the extradition case against Mr Shah back to the appeal court to be heard by a new panel of judges.

That court has now ruled that Mr Shah be extradited to Denmark where he will face charges of fraud and money laundering.