Eight men have been sentenced to death over a spate of armed robberies in Sharjah in which security van guards were attacked and Dh1.8 million stolen.
The men - all Nigerian nationals - were convicted of armed robbery, physical assault and forcefully obtaining money by Sharjah Criminal Court on Wednesday.
The cash was stolen in three raids on vans transporting cash boxes in December 2016. The men were arrested in early January 2017.
The court heard some of men admitted the charges, while others denied them, at an earlier hearing.
At the time, Sharjah Police said about 20 suspects were initially held over the raids outside ATM machines.
The first raid took place at a Dubai Commercial Bank ATM on King Abdul Aziz Street where about Dh340,000 was stolen.
Two days later the gang attacked security guards near an ATM in Al Safeer Mall in Al Nahda and made off with about Dh700,000. A third attack on a van near a cash machine in the Muweilah area led to Dh710,000 being taken.
A fourth attack at a money exchange office on Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road, near National Paints on the Dubai-Sharjah border, was thwarted by police.
The men fought with police, injuring two officers, as they were taken into custody, Sharjah Police's Colonel Aref Al Bayat told reporters at the time.
Police said some of the money was recovered and some lost, without specifying figures.
“Officers found drugs in the apartment, which was shared with about 40 people from the same nationality,” he said.
A ninth suspect was sentenced to six months in prison on Wednesday, to be followed by deportation for possessing stolen money.
He told the court he was not aware the money was stolen. He said the brother of one of his fellow defendants phoned him from Nigeria and asked him to take Dh60,000 and transfer it to him.
The case was the latest in a spate of armed robberies.
In February, nine men, also all Nigerians, were sentenced to a total of 18 years for a raid on a cash transit vehicle in Dubai.
And last month, two men were arrested over an armed robbery on a supermarket in Sharjah.
Dramatic CCTV footage showed the men wielding cleavers and lashing out at security guards, who tackled them. The men are in custody awaiting trial.
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Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
Tributes from the UAE's personal finance community
• Sebastien Aguilar, who heads SimplyFI.org, a non-profit community where people learn to invest Bogleheads’ style
“It is thanks to Jack Bogle’s work that this community exists and thanks to his work that many investors now get the full benefits of long term, buy and hold stock market investing.
Compared to the industry, investing using the common sense approach of a Boglehead saves a lot in costs and guarantees higher returns than the average actively managed fund over the long term.
From a personal perspective, learning how to invest using Bogle’s approach was a turning point in my life. I quickly realised there was no point chasing returns and paying expensive advisers or platforms. Once money is taken care off, you can work on what truly matters, such as family, relationships or other projects. I owe Jack Bogle for that.”
• Sam Instone, director of financial advisory firm AES International
"Thought to have saved investors over a trillion dollars, Jack Bogle’s ideas truly changed the way the world invests. Shaped by his own personal experiences, his philosophy and basic rules for investors challenged the status quo of a self-interested global industry and eventually prevailed. Loathed by many big companies and commission-driven salespeople, he has transformed the way well-informed investors and professional advisers make decisions."
• Demos Kyprianou, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"Jack Bogle for me was a rebel, a revolutionary who changed the industry and gave the little guy like me, a chance. He was also a mentor who inspired me to take the leap and take control of my own finances."
• Steve Cronin, founder of DeadSimpleSaving.com
"Obsessed with reducing fees, Jack Bogle structured Vanguard to be owned by its clients – that way the priority would be fee minimisation for clients rather than profit maximisation for the company.
His real gift to us has been the ability to invest in the stock market (buy and hold for the long term) rather than be forced to speculate (try to make profits in the shorter term) or even worse have others speculate on our behalf.
Bogle has given countless investors the ability to get on with their life while growing their wealth in the background as fast as possible. The Financial Independence movement would barely exist without this."
• Zach Holz, who blogs about financial independence at The Happiest Teacher
"Jack Bogle was one of the greatest forces for wealth democratisation the world has ever seen. He allowed people a way to be free from the parasitical "financial advisers" whose only real concern are the fat fees they get from selling you over-complicated "products" that have caused millions of people all around the world real harm.”
• Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"In an industry that’s synonymous with greed, Jack Bogle was a lone wolf, swimming against the tide. When others were incentivised to enrich themselves, he stood by the ‘fiduciary’ standard – something that is badly needed in the financial industry of the UAE."
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Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
Fire and Fury
By Michael Wolff,
Henry Holt
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The specs
Engine: 8.0-litre, quad-turbo 16-cylinder
Transmission: 7-speed auto
0-100kmh 2.3 seconds
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0-300kmh 11.6 seconds
Power: 1500hp
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Price: Dh13,400,000
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October 9: v Sabah FA
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Previous men's records
- 2:01:39: Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) on 16/9/19 in Berlin
- 2:02:57: Dennis Kimetto (KEN) on 28/09/2014 in Berlin
- 2:03:23: Wilson Kipsang (KEN) on 29/09/2013 in Berlin
- 2:03:38: Patrick Makau (KEN) on 25/09/2011 in Berlin
- 2:03:59: Haile Gebreselassie (ETH) on 28/09/2008 in Berlin
- 2:04:26: Haile Gebreselassie (ETH) on 30/09/2007 in Berlin
- 2:04:55: Paul Tergat (KEN) on 28/09/2003 in Berlin
- 2:05:38: Khalid Khannouchi (USA) 14/04/2002 in London
- 2:05:42: Khalid Khannouchi (USA) 24/10/1999 in Chicago
- 2:06:05: Ronaldo da Costa (BRA) 20/09/1998 in Berlin
The winners
Fiction
- ‘Amreekiya’ by Lena Mahmoud
- ‘As Good As True’ by Cheryl Reid
The Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award
- ‘Syrian and Lebanese Patricios in Sao Paulo’ by Oswaldo Truzzi; translated by Ramon J Stern
- ‘The Sound of Listening’ by Philip Metres
The George Ellenbogen Poetry Award
- ‘Footnotes in the Order of Disappearance’ by Fady Joudah
Children/Young Adult
- ‘I’ve Loved You Since Forever’ by Hoda Kotb
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Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
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