Teenager admits etisalat diesel theft

DUBAI // A teenager admitted yesterday that he stole 294 gallons of diesel from an etisalat broadcast tower. The 1,337 litres of fuel, used to power an electric generator at the Jebel Ali mobile phone tower, were taken on January 19, according to public prosecution records. The defendant, KH, 19, from Syria, admitted the charges at a hearing at the Dubai Court of Appeal, where he tried to have his deportation order quashed. KH was charged at the Dubai Court of Misdemeanours with theft from a government institution and sentenced on June 3 to two months in prison, followed by deportation.

Records show KH broke into the tower and stole the fuel with the aid of another Syrian man, who was not apprehended. Officers at the Jebel Ali police station were alerted to the crime after an etisalat engineer, MH, 27, from Egypt, was called to the tower and discovered the theft. He told officers that the network had failed after the generator stopped working. Police found the defendant near the Al Fuqa'a area, close to Al Ain Road. KH told officers he was trying to sell the diesel, valued at Dh3,454, for Dh8 per gallon.

KH pleaded with presiding Judge Adnan al Farra, of the Dubai Court of Appeal, to drop the deportation order. Records show that KH is facing another petty theft charge, which he allegedly committed before his appearance for this case. He will be charged and stand trial on August 18 at the Dubai Court of Misdemeanours. The court will issue its verdict on August 8. [e-mail]