African gang beats, robs European man in Dubai hotel

Sohaila Ahmed, Staff Reporter

A 32-year-old African woman was arrested and referred to the criminal court for holding a European man captive, and robbing him with the help of multiple runaway accomplices.

Official records indicate that the defendant lured the victim to a hotel apartment by chatting with him through Tinder app and pretending to be a Brazilian woman.

The victim testified that he arrived at the hotel and was surprised to find a gang of six African individuals – three men and three women –who suddenly grabbed him and began to beat him.

The victim attempted to flee away, but the gang overpowered him and repeatedly threatened to kill him with a knife.

The defendants forced him to give up three credit cards and their passwords, and then began to record the victim naked to guarantee his silence.

The gang threatened that if he reported the incident to police, they would claim that he assaulted one of the female defendants.

The victim was left stranded inside the hotel apartment for a long period.

They later forced him to take shower in order to flee the room.

The defendants carried out several bank transactions with the victim’s credit cards to purchase online goods.

Recently, a British tourist escaped a harsh penalty for possessing and using drugs after a defence argument proved his arrest warrant was based on insufficient evidence.

The Dubai Misdemeanours Court has fined the 32-year-old man Dhs5,000 and ordered his deportation.

The tourist was arrested at his hotel room in Jebel Ali area last December and was charged in January with possessing 4.5 grammes of cocaine.

He was additionally charged with using the illegal substance.

“His arrest was according to a warrant that was based on insufficient evidence and non-serious investigations,” Emirati lawyer Awatif Mohammed Khouri, from Al Rowaad Advocates, told the court.