A member of staff at Atlantis, The Palm, was in police custody yesterday after a list of guests staying at the resort, complete with their room numbers, was leaked to journalists. The list, leaked just 24 hours before the star-studded Dh147 million (US$40m) launch party, revealed the attendance of celebrities such as the actors Wesley Snipes and Ben Affleck, the singer Dame Shirley Bassey, the music producer Quincy Jones, the artist Damien Hirst, and the entrepreneur Richard Branson, among the 2,000 invitees.
Police stepped in because the leak, which detailed the names, room numbers and suite types of the VIP guests as well as their arrival and departure dates and in some cases their arrival flight numbers, constituted a potential security risk. No one at Atlantis could be reached for formal comment on the leak or what, if any, action would be taken in response. But a source said: "This shows how seriously these breaches of security are being taken here."
The list was circulated to staff working at Atlantis to give them an idea of who to expect at the party. But it is understood it was not an exhaustive list of attendees and that some potentially sensitive guest names were kept off it. tspender@thenational.ae
