A man in United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been sentenced to jail for embezzling AED 40 million ($10.9 million) from his employer to live a lavish lifestyle.
The convict used the stolen money to purchase luxury cars, and expensive jewelry, and to go on international vacations. In addition to imprisonment, he has been ordered to return the stolen funds.
The Abu Dhabi Criminal Court, responsible for handling money laundering and tax evasion cases, found the defendant guilty. He was involved in a scheme where he laundered money acquired via corruption, intentionally caused damage to public funds, and engaged in forgery and the use of fake official documents.
The man took advantage of his position in a public agency to create fake scholarship files, allowing him to embezzle funds from his employer totaling AED 40 million ($10.9 million).
As a result of his crimes, Abu Dhabi Criminal Court sentenced him to 15 years in prison for the offenses of misappropriation and intentional damage to public funds, forgery, and use of forged official and customary documents.
The court also gave him a ten-year prison sentence and a fine of AED 10 million for money laundering. All the assets and items seized in connection with the crime, including those used or acquired as a result, were ordered to be confiscated.
The investigations conducted by the Abu Dhabi Public Prosecution revealed that the defendant abused his position to carry out these offenses. He misappropriated public funds and attempted to conceal the origin of the illegally obtained money by purchasing luxury cars, special license plates, and valuable jewelry, and taking trips abroad.