The Abu Dhabi Family, Civil and Administrative Court ordered two men to jointly repay AED 66,773 to a woman who lost her savings in a scam involving someone posing as a bank employee. The court also ordered them to pay the claimant AED 8,000 in compensation for material and moral damages.

The woman filed a civil lawsuit seeking the return of AED 66,773 withdrawn from her account, as well as AED 20,000 in compensation for material and moral damages. She also requested payment of court fees and other legal expenses.

According to the claimant, an unidentified person contacted her and claimed to be a bank employee. Under the pretext of updating her banking information, the caller obtained her account details and security verification code.

Following the call, AED 59,630 was transferred to the second defendant’s account. The first defendant withdrew AED 49,700 of the stolen funds in cash, while the remaining amount was deducted for the benefit of an unidentified individual.

Defendants’ Previous Criminal Convictions

In her lawsuit, the claimant said investigations showed that both defendants had previous criminal convictions in fraud cases and had also been convicted earlier in connection with this case.

The court said that, in the earlier criminal proceedings, both defendants had been sentenced in absentia to two months in prison, although their sentences were suspended. Deportation orders were also issued against them.

The criminal ruling was based on the unlawful appropriation of AED 66,773 through fraudulent means and the use of a false identity or position, which deceived the claimant and caused her to lose her money.

The court stressed that the criminal and civil cases related to the fraud arose from the same facts, and that the unlawful appropriation of the funds had been established in the earlier criminal judgment.

On that basis, the court ruled that both defendants were liable to return the stolen amount because they had obtained the money without any legal entitlement.

The court also noted that neither defendant attended the hearings or provided evidence that the amount had been repaid.

The court therefore found the claimant’s request for the return of AED 66,773 to be legally justified.

Compensation for Material and Moral Damages

In considering the compensation claim, the court said the defendants’ actions not only caused direct financial loss but also deprived the claimant of the use of her money and the returns and profits she could have earned from it during that period.

The court also considered the expenses incurred by the woman in pursuing the case and seeking to enforce her rights as additional financial losses.

In addition to the material damages, the court recognised the emotional harm and psychological distress caused by the fraud as moral damages.

The Abu Dhabi Family, Civil and Administrative Court ultimately ordered the two defendants to jointly repay AED 66,773 to the claimant and pay her a further AED 8,000 in compensation for material and moral damages.

The two men were also ordered to pay the court fees and other case-related expenses.