An Indian expatriate is battling to overturn a deportation order after being convicted in a cybercrime case involving the alleged deception of a man out of AED20,000. The employee, who denies any wrongdoing, is appealing the conviction at the Fujairah Appeal Court in hopes of avoiding deportation and clearing his name.
The Fujairah Primary Court found the 26-year-old defendant guilty of using the messaging app Telegram to con an Arab national into transferring AED20,000 into two separate accounts. According to court documents, the victim reported the incident to police in July after being convinced to invest in online digital trading by someone who contacted him through Telegram.
Investigations revealed that one of the accounts receiving the money belonged to the Indian national, leading to his arrest. He was subsequently charged with cybercrime and deception.
However, the defendant has consistently denied the charges. During questioning, he claimed he had secured a job through an Instagram advertisement and was instructed to convince clients to engage in online trading. He was allegedly asked to provide his bank account details in a WhatsApp group, where clients were told to transfer money.
The defendant’s lawyer, Hani Hammouda Hagag, argued in court that his client had no criminal intent and did not intend to defraud the victim. Hagag explained that if the defendant had intended to commit fraud, he would have used a false identity to hide his involvement.
The lawyer further emphasized that the victim had waived his accusations and dropped the case after acknowledging that both parties had been deceived by a third party. “The crime of swindling and deception requires criminal intent, which my client did not have,” Hagag argued.
Hagag also claimed that the defendant was merely performing his job duties by transferring money to his employer and had not personally benefited from the funds. Documents supporting the defense’s argument were submitted to the court, along with a copy of the victim’s waiver.
Despite these arguments, the Fujairah Primary Court found the defendant guilty but showed leniency by imposing deportation instead of a prison sentence.
Hagag confirmed to Khaleej Times that an appeal has been filed to overturn the deportation order, with a hearing expected soon.
