Police officer denies airport thefts

DUBAI // A police corporal has denied stealing cash and a gold bracelet from Dubai International Airport's lost luggage office. The Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance heard that the defendant, NS, a 37-year-old Pakistani man, had offered on April 4 to take a belt bag which contained 910 Australian dollars to the lost and found office.

However, the officer in charge of the office said that the belt bag was never turned in. NS first told the officer in charge that he had handed it over to another policeman at the airport. NS said he did not know the other policeman's name or number. The court heard that the defendant changed his statement the next day and told his superior that he had lied because he was afraid of the consequences of losing its contents while in his possession.

NS said the cash and the gold bracelet were already missing when he took charge of the belt bag. NS was charged with embezzling money while performing his official duties. The case has been adjourned until Nov 30. [e-mail]