ABU DHABI // A man who brought an antique gun into the country had his deportation order and fine cancelled after the Court of Appeals cleared him of breaching general security.
K, from Denmark, arrived in the UAE to work as an assistant pilot for a local airlines company and had his belongings transferred.
A customs officer at Abu Dhabi International Airport inspected his luggage and found an unlicensed antique gun dating back to 1846.
K was then arrested on charges of breaching public security, before being bailed, the court heard.
The first instance court ordered that he pay a Dh15,000 fine and be deported.
The defendant appealed the verdict arguing that the gun, an antique he had inherited from his grandparents, could not be used.
He added that in Denmark he did not require a license to own the gun, something he was unaware would be required in the UAE.
The appeals court acquitted him after forensics tests confirmed the gun could not be fired because the projectiles it required are no longer produced or available anywhere.
The court also found there was no criminal intent because K had disclosed the gun in the list of items he had transferred to the UAE, describing it in detail.
The court agreed he did not intend to smuggle it into the country or hide it from authorities, adding that the customs officer could simply have refused to let it in.
hdajani@thenational.ae
