Wednesday, Nov 16, 2011
Gulf News
Dubai The lawyer of Deyaar’s former CEO yesterday surprised a court when he asked two graft cases involving his client and other suspects to be clubbed together.
The Dubai Court of First Instance, chaired by Judge Al Saeed Mohammad Barghout, is trying Deyaar’s former CEO, 46-year-old Lebanese-American Z.S., in two separate graft cases.
The first case involves Z.S. and eight other suspects for allegedly committing various financial irregularities worth Dh237 million.
The second case involves Z.S. and M.K., a former Emirati minister and former chairman of Dubai Islamic Bank’s board of directors, for defrauding Deyaar by almost Dh56.6 million.
Z.S.’s lawyer Ali Abdullah Al Shamsi submitted a petition asking Judge Barghout to club the two cases together.
“Investigations have revealed that the incidents which happened in both cases contain common facts. We ask the court to club the two cases in one as per article 145 of the UAE’s Criminal Procedures Law.
Best interest of justice
“The article stipulates that if a suspect or more were referred to two distinct courts in two separate cases for committing one or more than one crime [that were connected and investigated by the same authority] then those suspects should stand trial before the same court in one case.
“Knowing that this bench of judges started looking into the major Deyaar case [involving Z.S. and M.K.] before this case [involving Z.S. and eight suspects], which was recently referred to your jurisdiction, I ask the court to club the two cases in one,” advocate Al Shamsi told Presiding Judge Barghout in courtroom four yesterday.
“The court will look into your petition and if it is in the best interest of implementing justice, then we would club the two cases into one,” said Presiding Judge Barghout after accepting Al Shamsi’s written petition.
Prosecutors charged Z.S. with embezzling public funds, intentionally inflicting loss of public funds — as Deyaar is a government entity — offering and accepting bribes, deliberately damaging the country’s interest and revealing Deyaar’s secrets and unlawfully benefiting from that.
According to the arraignment sheet, prosecutors also charged Z.S. and eight other executives — four Indians, one Argentine, one from Lebanon, a Palestinian and a Pakistani — of abuse of public office, defrauding, swindling, embezzling, breach of trust, forgery and using fake documents, divulging Deyaar’s secrets and aiding and abetting a crime.
Financial irregularities
Court records said the financial irregularities added up to losses of nearly Dh237 million for the company.
During yesterday’s hearing, Deyaar’s former CEO pleaded not guilty when he denied 21 different charges that were presented against him.
It took the court translator 20 minutes to read out the seven-page arraignment of sheet for Z.S., who preferred to hear the charges translated into English.
The remaining defendants [except for Deyaar’s Indian former operations manager, who is at large] pleaded not guilty.
Deyaar’s lawyer Khalid Al Hamrani of Al Tamimi and Co asked for an adjournment to study the new charge sheet.
Prosecutors charged Z.S. with embezzling public funds, intentionally inflicting loss of public funds ... offering and accepting bribes, deliberately damaging the country’s interest and revealing Deyaar’s secrets and unlawfully benefiting from that.
By Bassam Zaza ?Senior Reporter
Gulf News 2011. All rights reserved.
