A robbery gang that stole over Dh80,000 worth of e-cigarettes and vaping devices from a parked car in Dubai has been sentenced to three months of imprisonment.
The five men, aged around 20, broke into a parked car at International City and robbed 19 boxes of e-cigarettes as well as Dh6,000 in cash left by a company driver, heard the Dubai Criminal Court.
Dubai Police got a call reporting a car robbery in the area earlier on March 13.
The victim, who works in the company of trading e-cigarettes, told the police officers that he parked his car, a silver Toyota Fortuner, in front of his residence in the Chinese district of the community.
When he woke up in the morning and discovered one of the car’s windows was smashed, and 19 boxes of vapes and e-cigarettes worth Dh80,000 had been robbed, along with Dh6,000 in cash that belonged to his company.
Dubai Police stated that they recognized the two cars used for the robbery via CCTV cameras. All the five were later caught and arrested.
A policeman stated that the first suspect plotted for the theft, and with help from others, they monitored the victim and waited till he went inside his home and then smashed the window glass of his vehicle.
The defendants are from Bangladesh, and they loaded the boxed in two cars and drove to Sharjah.
They then agreed to sell the robbed items to a purchaser for Dh44,000, who gave them a downpayment of Dh19,000 and vowed to pay the rest of the amount when he sold the cigarettes. The buyer is still at large as to the police.
All five will be deported after serving their jail time.
Additionally, they were asked to pay a fine of Dh86,000.
The ruling is subject to appeal within 15 days.