Dubai, September 30: A British visitor pleaded not guilty to attempted fraud when he appeared in the Court of First Instance on Tuesday.
He is also facing charges of forging the entry permit stamps, using a false passport and name and, violently resisting police officials.
He denied all the charges.
The Briton, 25, on a visit visa, allegedly offered a villa for sale for Dh16 million in Palm Jumeirah, belonging to a compatriot, to another British man here.
The defendant did not own it nor did he have any power of attorney to dispose it.
Luckily, the ‘prospective buyer’ did not fall ‘victim’ to the attempted swindle and informed the police.
When the cops trapped the alleged fraudster outside the villa they were met with resistance and the scuffle ended in bruises and scratches.
Police officers on duty at the Jebel Ali Police station on June 17 received a complaint from two Britons against someone trying to sell a villa, which was not his, for Dh16 million.
“A British man called me up asking me to help him sell his villa in Palm Jumeirah for Dh16 million. I told him to send a passport copy and the real estate ownership documents,” the complainant, a British real estate agent, told the police. “When I showed those documents to some friends, who work in the real estate field, I was told the villa was owned by another British citizen,” the agent added.
“The villa’s owner was surprised to know about it. But he asked me to go along with the ‘fake owner’ so that the police could catch him,” the real estate agent said.
The witness knew that the ‘fraudster’ had the villa’s key and set a date to meet with him to see the villa for sale.
The police was informed about the timing and place of the meeting which was scheduled for 4pm.
“When I saw a person stepping off from a cab and the complainant signalled to me that it was our wanted guy we intervened,” said a police officer.
However, before they could show their police identity cards the officers were assaulted by the man.
“He punched me on my shoulder and right arm and pushed me to the ground. My colleague grabbed him with the assistance of the complainants,” the police officer added.
Before making him enter their car, the police officers saw the British man throwing his passport towards a swimming pool.
“My colleague had scratches in his arms because of the struggle” the police officer said.
–Agencies