Dubai bank employee embezzled a million dirhams, court hears

The manager allegedly opened accounts at other banks - then lodged money into them from cheques drawn from Samba Bank accounts which were not his.

DUBAI // A Samba Bank financial manager embezzled more than a million dirhams before fleeing the country, a court heard.

Palestinian A S, 41, opened five accounts under his name at other banks, then deposited Dh1,012,800 into them after issuing five cheques to himself, it was alleged.

The money for the cheques was deducted from a Samba Bank account that was not the defendant’s, it was alleged at Dubai Criminal Court.

N A, 39, an Emirati section head at the bank, said in July 2010, the defendant was acting suspiciously and took two unreported leave days. “I had the auditing team double check his work and then they discovered the embezzlement,” she said.

She added that A S withdrew the money from the five bank accounts then fled the country.

“We tried to call him several times to solve the issue, but his phone was turned off. Therefore we reported him to police.”

A B, 38, the head of the audit department at Samba Bank, said he had investigated the employee’s work. “The five banks where he opened accounts called the Central Bank to inquire about the cheques. The defendant abused his position by being the one responsible for giving approval to such operations and approved cashing these cheques,” A B said.

The defendant was not present at Dubai Criminal Court on Tuesday to enter a plea.

The next hearing was set for January 26.