DUBAI // Three Romanians who obtained jewellery worth more than Dh11 million from a shop in Dubai were jailed for three years on Wednesday.
Their scheme involved setting up a large purchase from the jewellery shop, and then fooling its owner and his son into flying to Paris to complete the transaction.
Once there they were held at knifepoint and forced to tell their shop assistant to release the jewellery to one of the thieves in Dubai.
F K, 58, entered the jewellery shop in December last year and told salesman B S, 41, that he was a gold expert interested in buying jewellery because he was opening a shop in Abu Dhabi.
He picked out 55 diamond necklaces, 120 rings, 71 pairs of earrings and 25 bracelets, and asked for a quote.
“I was in Lebanon when B S called me and told me about F K. Then he sent me pictures of the jewellery F K picked up, after which I agreed to give him a 45 per cent discount,” said M J, 57, the Lebanese shop owner.
Later that day, M J received a call from A A, an Egyptian who said he was working with F K but was in France. He said he wanted to pay for the jewellery in cash, in Paris.
M J flew to France with his son to meet the Egyptian and give the buyer a copy of the jewellery certificates, and agreed to receive payment the following day.
M J and his son met the Egyptian the next day and a man identified as A arrived and requested that the father accompany him to his hotel room to receive the money, while the son stayed in the hotel lobby with the Egyptian.
“In his room, he showed me bundles of €500 bills, and I told him that the money was incomplete,” M J said.
Then two men entered the room and threatened the shop owner with a knife, saying that he and his son would be hurt if the jewellery was not handed over to their man in Dubai.
The shop owner called his salesman and told him to hand the jewellery to M B, 34, a Romanian who was there on behalf of F K.
The father and son were then taken to a train station and forced to board a train to Belgium. After arriving there, they returned to Paris.
“I tried to call B S while in Belgium but couldn’t reach him until I came back to Paris, and told him to call Dubai Police, while I reported the incident to the police in France,” M J said.
Police officer A Y, 32, said the three accused were identified from CCTV footage.
M B was apprehended at his home in Jumeirah Lakes Towers, while F K and a third thief, compatriot F A, 57, were apprehended in Dubai Marina.
Police found some of the jewellery hidden at F A’s home and the rest was in F K’s apartment.
At Dubai Criminal Court in May, F K and M B denied a charge of issuing threats, while F A denied the charge of possession of stolen items.
They will be deported on finishing their terms.
salamir@thenational.ae
