Dubai court jails trio for kidnapping and torturing man over Dh500 unpaid debt

The Pakistani men will be deported after finishing their prison sentence

Dubai Criminal Court issued the guilty verdict on September 6, giving the men 15 days in which to launch any appeal. AFP

Dubai Criminal Court has sentenced three Pakistani men to six months in jail for kidnapping and torturing a fellow countryman over a Dh500 unpaid debt.

The court issued the guilty verdict on September 6, giving the men 15 days in which to launch any appeal.

The men, who admitted to the crime in court, will be deported after finishing their jail term.

The incident happened in January in Al Rigga. The victim said the men first beat him and then took him to a building in the area and locked him inside a flat.

“They took my phone and kept me inside the flat for 15 hours," he said, court records showed.

"They threatened to harm my family in Pakistan to force me to pay back the money.

"But when they were busy in the second room, I got my phone and asked Dubai Police for help via their Instagram account. I also gave them my location and the flat number."

A policeman said he was patrolling the area on the day of the incident. He received an emergency call from the force to go and check a nearby flat.

“I knocked on the door and one of the defendants opened the door," said the policeman, as per official records. "I saw the victim crying and he told me that he was kidnapped by the people living in the flat.

“The defendants admitted to locking the victim inside the flat to force him to return the money. One of them claimed of paying money to pay for a visit visa for his brother.”