Sailor acquitted of kidnapping and theft

DUBAI// A sailor who allegedly posed as a police officer and kidnapped another man after telling him he was under arrest was acquitted this morning of kidnapping and theft.

The defendant, NA, 27, an Emirati, was accused of kidnapping SN, a Pakistani driver, after allegedly posing as a police officer with other unidentified men, court records with the Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance show.

The records show that NA and his alleged accomplices told the victim he was wanted by police. Then, they took him in their car and assaulted him, records show.

SN said in his testimony that on January 12 at about 11.30pm, he was walking in the Al Baraha area when the defendant approached him in a Mitsubishi with four other men in the car.

He added that one of the men asked him for his ID, then told him he was arrested and was being taken to the Naif police station, records show. NA was also accused of taking money and a mobile phone from SN, according to court records.

SN told prosecutors that when he realised the men were not police officers as they had claimed, he tried to get out of the moving car, but the men severely abused him.

"NA threw a punch at my face...my nose started bleeding," he told prosecutors.

He said that on the way, he jumped at the driver and grabbed the steering wheel. The car swerved and then stopped, he said. People surrounded the vehicle and helped him catch the defendant NA, while the other men managed to drive away, he said.

NA denied the charges.

salamir@thenational.ae

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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.