A Dubai court has found 30 people and seven companies guilty of laundering money and embezzling 32 million Emirati dirhams ($8.7 million) in online fraud.
The court ordered the defendants to jointly pay a fine of more than 32 million dirhams ($8.7 million).
The 30 members were sentenced to a combined total of 96 years in prison and will be deported from the UAE after serving their time.
The court also ordered the confiscation of computers and phones used in the crime.
It imposed a combined total fine of 700,000 dirhams ($190,500) on the seven companies involved in the case. The court ordered the confiscation of funds or assets belonging to the defendants to cover the fine.
Earlier, the Public Prosecution referred the 30 individuals and seven companies to the Dubai Courts over charges of money laundering and running a 32 million dirhams ($8.7 million) online scam.
Counselor Ismail Madani, the senior advocate general and head of public funds prosecution, said that the gang stole the money by sending 118,000 phishing emails to victims, falsely impersonating banks and financial institutions with which they had business relationships.
The emails asked those targeted to transfer payments to the defendants’ accounts, which they then either cashed out the money, transferred to other accounts, or bought used cars to hide the illegal source of the funds, Madani added.
He noted that UAE authorities were making every effort to combat such criminal activity and were committed to tackling money laundering, online crimes, and scams that had the potential to impact on the national economy.
