Two Emiratis sentenced to 10 years in jail for insulting UAE

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The Abu Dhabi Federal Appeals Court sentenced an Emirati, N.A.K.B., to 10 years imprisonment for insulting the UAE and its national icons, and damaging the UAE’s relationship with an Arab nation.

N.A.K.B., who was present in the court, was also convicted for communicating with Al Islah, a secret wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, an organisation banned by the UAE.

The convict had set up websites and social media accounts and posted articles and pictures that insulted the UAE’s foreign policy and national icons. The prosecution accused him of posting illegal content online, knowing that they were against the UAE cyber laws.

The court ordered confiscation of electronic equipment the accused used for his subversive activities, such as laptop, mobile phone, etc.

In a separate case, the court sentenced an Emirati, H.A.D., in absentia, to 10 years’ imprisonment and a Dh10-million fine for trying to establish a political party and opening its branches in the UAE. He was also accused of encouraging people to overthrow the UAE Government.

The court ordered confiscation of electronic equipment used in the crime. The convict was also charged with posting false articles and information on his websites and social media accounts to promote his political party, which in turn insulted the UAE’s polices and national icons and damaged the UAE’s relationship with other Arab countries.

In a third verdict, the court sentenced an Asian, K.F., to five years in jail and a Dh5,000 fine followed by deportation for printing counterfeit currencies and selling them inside and outside the UAE.

In a fourth case, the court sentenced three Asians, M.S.M., S.L. and R.R., to three years imprisonment for printing counterfeit currencies and selling them inside and outside the UAE. The court ordered the confiscation of all electronic devices used in the crime.

A fifth case involving three suspects — two Emiratis and one Egyptian — was adjourned by the court until May 3 when a verdict will be issued. The general prosecution charged the accused with trading a stolen gun, a rifle and 20 pieces of ammunition.

The first accused, an Emirati — A.A.M., claimed that he did not know that the weapons and ammunition were stolen. The second accused, an Egyptian, A.F., denied all charges. He said that he knew the other two people but was not involved in the crime.

The third accused, an Emirati, H.A.S.S., was accused of buying the gun, the rifle and ammunition from the first accused but he too denied the charges. He told the court that he bought the items for hunting and was not aware that the weapons had been stolen or lacking official permits. The court adjourned the case until May 3 for the final verdict.

In a sixth case, the prosecution accused an Egyptian, M.S.G.A., of using a fake Ukrainian passport for travelling to and from the UAE. The suspect denied the charge and claimed that he did not know that the passport was fake and that he had obtained it through friends abroad.

His lawyer, Fahd Mohammad, argued that his client “was innocent as he had got the passport from outside the UAE without knowing that it was fake.”

The lawyer argued that his client was a top executive with a communication company based in one of the GCC nations and he never wanted to make any extra money with a fake passport but had only sought to get rid of his Egyptian passport and get a foreign one.

The court adjourned the case until May 3 for the final verdict.

source:gulf news