(MENAFN - Khaleej Times) Two French men, aged 21 and 39, stood trial in the Court of First Instance on the charge of robbing with the use of a gun a money exchange outlet in Dubai Motor City area.
The two - an athlete and a visitor named F.I. and K.H., respectively - have also been accused of possessing a gun and ammunition without a permit. They used a stolen car in the heist.
Two Emirati brothers, aged 32 and 39 and identified as M.B. and A.B., have been charged with helping the heist as they allegedly supplied the fire gun, a pistol and the stolen car used in the robbery to F.I. and K.H. They are also accused of importing and possessing a fire gun and its ammunition without a permit while A.B. is also accused of stealing a car belonging to a private company.
According to the prosecution records, F.I. and K.H. robbed different currencies from the exchange outlet on September 23 last year.
F.I. admitted during the prosecution investigation that he had been a customer of the outlet for about a month and a half before the incident. He and K.H. planned to rob the shop after noticing that the security at the outlet had not been tight and it was close to where they lived.
He asked M.B. for a fire gun and paid him Dh1,500. M.B. and his brother allegedly brought the pistol from Oman. A.B. also gave them a teargas substance.
For the robbery plan, F.I. and K.H. also purchased gloves, masks, sunglasses and sports clothes.
A.B. gave them a car, which turned out to be stolen.
F.I. and K.H. entered the shop sometime after 10am on September 23 last year and shouted at the staff and people there. K.H. pointed the gun at them while F.I. filled a bag, he had brought with him, with different currencies. The heist took less than two minutes.
A police captain said that they found the stolen car used in the heist in a sandy yard in the Sports City. Through leads and investigation, the police learnt that F.I. and K.H. were behind in the robbery and arrested them from the parking lot of a hotel on Shaikh Zayed Road.
They admitted to the police that they had robbed the exchange outlet and led the police to where they had hidden the money in their house. The police seized the gun and the tools used in the robbery from their house and sent them to the Criminal Lab.
