Four-year legal battle in Dubai uncovers Dh20m fraud
Dispute between the two companies arose after the manager of the IT company defrauded the government entity
The Expertise Disputes Settlement Department of Dubai Courts has finally solved the riddle of a legal case lasting four years, between an Information Technology (IT) Systems and Software Development Company and a Government department.
The dispute between the two companies arose after the manager of the IT company defrauded the government entity in over Dh20 million.
Following the investigation, the director of the IT firm has been sentenced to five years in imprisonment, followed by deportation.
According to public records, the private IT company was contracted by the government department to implement a technical programme costing Dh20m.
According to the contract, the two companies agreed to implement the programme according to specifications and standards that would be utilised by a specialised company based in the US.
However, the director of the IT systems company breached the agreement and implemented the programme in the UAE instead, and those specifications differed from what was agreed upon.
Hashim Salem Al Qiwani Director of the Expertise Disputes Settlement Department, Dubai Courts said that the dispute between the parties continued for four years within the legal system.
He stated: “The case was referred by Dubai Courts to the Expertise Disputes Settlement Department, which assigned a technical expert to look into the case.”
Al Qiwani added that an expert prepared a report indicating that the local company had defrauded on the contract that had been agreed upon.
The report further states the defendant took advantage of his position as the Director of Operations of the IT company for 15 years and his relationship with the members of the Board of Directors of the government agency.
The accused created a fake company in the US, using other partners, including a former director of his company.
The fraud was uncovered when an officer of the IT company received financial payments for the programme in US dollars.
When an enquiry was made, it was revealed that the programme was developed here in the UAE and there is no company by that name in the US.
The technical expert who is identified as Mohammed Al-Olama was able to uncover the correspondence and registrations of the commercial licenses in the US.
The expert discovered the US company was created a week after the agreement between the government agency and the local IT company, where the name of the President of the American company was the same as that of the Director of the IT company.
Al Qiwani has advised other companies to maintain efficient internal auditing systems and file contract documents to ensure such incidents don’t occur.
He has also appealed to companies and government institutions ensure that their laws match with local and federal laws and regulations.
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