Officer charged with taking Dh55,000 bribe

An Emirati immigration officer at Dubai International Airport accepted a Dh55,000 bribe to allow a woman who had been deported to return to the country, a court hears.

DUBAI // An Emirati immigration officer at Dubai International Airport accepted a Dh55,000 bribe to allow a woman who had been deported to return to the country, a court heard yesterday. The immigration officer, identified as MS, a 32-year-old sergeant, who was stationed at the iris scanning machine in Terminal One, was charged with allowing the woman into the country and illegally stamping her visa with an entry stamp.

MS accepted a Dh5,000 bribe from the woman in Ras al Khaimah the day after her arrival, according to prosecutors. He then accepted a further Dh50,000 from her husband, MM, a Yemeni police officer, a few days later, they say. The husband, who has also been arrested in the case, is accused of delivering the money. He has also been charged with bribery. The immigration officer was referred to the Public Prosecution after giving testimony to an Immigration Department investigation committee. The woman was deported, and is being tried in absentia.

MS defended himself at the committee hearing by claiming he made an honest mistake after the woman, identified as TM, flirted with him upon her arrival in October 2008. MM told prosecutors he married the woman after being introduced by a long-time time Iraqi friend. He later discovered she had been convicted of involvement in a sex ring in Sharjah. MS and MM both deny the charges. A verdict is expected on March 14.