DUBAI // An appeals court yesterday overturned the conviction of a former minister of state who had been imprisoned on charges of unlawfully taking control of an IT company that belonged to his late business partner. The minister, Dr Khalifa Bakheet al Falasi, was sentenced in February to two years in prison by the Dubai Misdemeanours Court for deceiving his Lebanese business partner's sister into believing he owned 51 per cent of the company.
The Dubai Misdemeanours Appeal Court overturned the guilty verdicts and overturned the deportation orders. Prosecutors now have 30 days to appeal against the ruling before the Dubai Court of Cassation, the highest court in the emirate. The Dubai Attorney General, Essam al Humaidan, said the public prosecution would examine the judgment to decide whether or not to challenge it at the court of cassation.
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