ABU DHABI // An administrator at Zayed Port has been sentenced to 10 years in jail and fined Dh500,000 for leaking classified information about the movement of naval ships to and from the capital.
M E B, a 42-year-old Indian, appeared at the Federal Supreme Court to face trial for handing over details of naval vessels to a person at the Indian Embassy.
The court heard that M E B was persuaded to hand over the information to speed up his daughter’s passport application. He used the port’s electronic system without a permit to obtain the information.
In a court hearing last October, M E B said he had been waiting 42 days for the Indian embassy to complete the passport procedure for his daughter.
“I told them I would not give anything illegal, but I have a family, a wife and children. I have done wrong,” said M E B.
His lawyer told the court the crime was minor because thousands of labourers and employees go through the ports every day, and news about which vessels arrive and leave is known by news agencies.
M E B will be deported after completing his sentence.
nalremeithi@thenational.ae