DUBAI // Two men are accused of stealing diamonds and jewellery worth more than Dh23,000 from the safe of a home while the owners were on holiday.
Prosecutors told Dubai Criminal Court that Emiratis A T, 34, and A M, 24, broke into the house in August last year and forced open the safe after breaking the keypad.
They are then alleged to have stolen US$3,400 (Dh12,488) in cash, Dh23,000 worth of gold jewellery set with diamonds, two gold necklaces and gold coins.
Two women and a man have been charged with possession of stolen items.
The court heard that Emiratis S T, 30, and H K, 31, sold the items to a jewellery shop, and Iraqi M Y, 30, was also implicated.
“When we returned from our holiday in Australia, we tried to open the door but the keys wouldn’t work, so we used another door and found my wife’s car boot was open,” said Australian businessman B A.
He told prosecutors that his son found the door unlocked.
“I made sure the doors were locked, which raised my suspicion that something wrong had happened.”
Jewellery shop owner H S, 31, said: “They [S T and H K] showed me the jewellery and I agreed to buy it for Dh17,000.
“I photocopied S T’s ID card and processed the sale.”
Policeman A N told prosecutors that H K accompanied S T to the shop to remove any suspicion.
“She haggled over the prices with the Yemeni trader, which helped in removing any suspicions of S T,” said the 32-year-old officer.
“The gang divided the responsibilities between them: A T and A M carried out the robberies, S T and H K kept some of the items and tried to sell them, while M Y’s role was to hide the stolen items.”
At Dubai Criminal Court, A M denied the charge of theft. A T was not present to enter a plea.
S T, H K and M Y pleaded not guilty to possession of stolen items.
The next court hearing is on August 12.
tzriqat@thenational.ae
