Phone theft trio acquitted on appeal

Three men jailed for stealing mobile phones and forging identity documents have been acquitted following an appeal.

The trio, two Pakistanis and one Indian national, were each sentenced to six months in prison in November last year.

The Indian defendant, who worked as a telecoms salesman, was charged with helping steal iPhones worth nearly Dh15,000.

His co-accused were also found guilty of forging documents and computer passwords to obtain and sell iPhones issued by the company.

During a hearing at the appeals court this week, a lawyer for the men disputed the evidence given at their trial.

He described the testimony against the three as weak and claimed no real proof existed of the crime.

“The testimony was vague regarding my clients’ alleged role,” he said.

Judges at the Dubai Court of Appeal acquitted all three men of all charges.

Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
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Price: On request

In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe

Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010

Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille

Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm

Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year

Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”

Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners

TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013

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Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal

Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham

Rating: 3.5/5

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The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz C200 Coupe

Price, base: Dh201,153
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 204hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 300Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.7L / 100km

Skewed figures

In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.

Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.