An Indian cleaner in Dubai is on trial for stealing expensive watches from his employer’s shop and then selling them to two Pakistani nationals.
The Indian, 26, worked at a jewellery shop in Al Qusais area and had been stealing watches before he was caught in December last year, said prosecutors at the Dubai Criminal Court.
He was charged with stealing 86 watches worth Dh8.3 million.
The incident came to light when a salesman at the shop found a watch in a trash bin.
“The worker brought it to me and told me he found the Dh30,000 watch in the bin,” said the Iraqi co-owner of the shop.
After checking the shop’s CCTV footage, the owner saw the cleaner stealing the watch and throwing it in the garbage.
“I confronted him and he admitted he stole it because he needed money. [He said] he planned to pick it up while taking out the trash,”
A stock inventory revealed that 86 watches had been stolen from the shop.
After being reported to the police, it was revealed that the man’s accomplices, two Pakistani men, sold the watches.
The duo remain at large and have been charged in absentia for possession of the stolen watches and selling them off.
The Indian denied the charges in the court.
The hearing has been adjourned until February 26 when a verdict is due to be passed.
