ABU DHABI // Three government officials who installed CCTV cameras at a customer service centre have been cleared of breaching public security but convicted of breaching employees’ privacy.
On Sunday, the Court of Misdemeanours handed each defendant a six-month suspended jail sentence for breaching the privacy of staff working at the centre, in Al Ain, where they placed the cameras. The court also issued a deportation order against Lebanese defendant P.
A K, the Emirati general director of the authority, M A, the manager of the branch, and P, the IT manager, denied the charges at an earlier court appearance.
They argued that the cameras, which the employees were aware of, had been introduced for security purposes. They also argued that the authority’s regulations did not entitle employees to any privacy, for security reasons.
The defendants spent two months in jail before being released on bail after an order by a judge at the Appeals Court.
The verdict issued on Sunday is subject to appeal.
hdajani@thenational.ae
