DUBAI // The lawyer for two former Burj Al Arab employees accused of pocketing more than Dh800,000 in bribes from food vendors has told the court his clients were not important enough to be bribed.
Advocate Yaqoob Shaheen asked the court to acquit his clients during closing arguments yesterday, saying the blame for accepting bribes from the food vendors to bring substandard foods to the hotel falls on Italian chef LG and Austrian pastry chef FS.
Court records show both men have already been administratively deported from the country.
Mr Shaheen also told the court his clients are not public officials because the hotel, although owned by the government-funded Jumeirah Group, is registered as an limited liability company.
Under UAE law, their punishments would be compounded if they are found guilty as public officials.
The accused, 56-year-old Indian chef F R was charged with accepting bribes worth Dh837,246 between April 2008 and March 2010 from four fruit, vegatable, fish and meat vendors.
Prosecutors told the court that he allowed them to sell the hotel sub-standard products at higher prices.
A 38-year-old butcher A M was charged with accepting Dh40,000 bribes to allow the substandard fish products to be used in the hotel restaurants.
The court will reconvene to issue its verdict on February 26.
