Accused gets bail in Nakheel case

In a new case of bribery in property major Nakheel's The World project, the Dubai Criminal Court yesterday released on bail the only detained defendant, SR, Canadian, keeping possession of his and his sponsor's passports.

SR will be required to pay Dh6 million if he breaches his bail conditions. The court also adjourned the case until July 7, asking the defence to submit its written argument in two weeks.

In yesterday's session, defence lawyers demanded the acquittal of the six accused, saying there was insufficient evidence against them for the bribery charge.

They also argued that there was no relation between money transfers to the account of sixth defendant RS – SR's father, also Canadian – and transactions related to the case. The Central Bank has sequestered RS's funds (Dh16 million) pending the verdict in the case. The Public Prosecution has charged SR, a former Nakheel sales consultant, with taking a Dh22m bribe and causing a Dh10.9m loss to Nakheel.

In another case related to financial wrongdoing in Mizin, witness Mustafa Hussein, an expert at the Financial Audit Department of the Dubai Ruler's Court, failed to attend the hearing. The court adjourned the case until June 27.

In the previous session, the court had rejected a request to return JH's passport despite his lawyer, Ali Al Shamsi, placing the appeal on the grounds that JH's father in Lebanon had cancer and the defendant could not go home or bring his father to Dubai because his passport was impounded.

In a third corruption case, the Public Prosecution demanded maximum punishment for Abid Al Boom for the embezzlement of deposits worth some Dh900 million of 3700 depositors in his company.