DUBAI // A man who was accused of embezzling Dh1.5 million worth of gold that he had been appointed to manage by a court as part of a civil case, was acquitted at Dubai Criminal Court on Sunday.
Prosecutors charged him with embezzling 15.36kg of gold at the centre of a case between two gold-trading companies when he failed to produce it when one of the companies won the case.
The 57-year-old Sudanese man, R S, was appointed by Dubai Civil Court in 2012 to manage the gold in return for Dh135,000. He was accused of abusing his position by stealing the gold in February, a charge he denied at Dubai Criminal Court in June.
An Emirati lawyer for one of the companies in the civil case told prosecutors: “My client had a civil case in court and, in 2009, a judge ordered the confiscation of the gold. My client won a court order to obtain the gold ... then it was discovered that R S had embezzled the gold.”
The man who was first appointed to take care of the gold in 2009 testified that he handed it over to R S because he needed his passport back to renew his visa. People assigned by courts to look after items in such cases have their passports seized.
R S took on the task because he needed the money.
Despite prosecution claims, the Sudanese man was found not guilty. The reason for the acquittal was not made available.
salamir@thenational.ae
