Nakheel’s Former Managers Deny Corruption Charges

Two of them, the former CEO and commercial operations manager, pleaded not guilty at the first hearing in the Court of First Instance on Tuesday.

The remaining, the former legal manager of Nakheel Waterfront and the manager of Prudentia Investments, are absconding and being tried in absentia.

The four — all Australian — are charged with defrauding Sunland, an Australian real estate firm, embezzlement in Nakheel’s name, bribery and abuse of power.

Court records say that the four defendants managed to defraud Sunland of Dh 44.1 million after the Prudentia manager pretended he owned a plot in Waterfront. He is also charged with instigating the crime.

They allegedly inveigled the Sunland manager into believing that a plot had been booked and registered in his name and that Dh44.1 million was needed 
to cede it.

Salem Shaaly, counsel for the former Waterfront CEO, argued that the land booking and Prudentia’s purchase from Nakheel was authentic. “Fifteen days after the beginning of investigation, we presented the Public Prosecution with a portfolio containing plenty of documents,” he said. “We gave them what proves that there was no fraud.”

However, Shaaly continued, the prosecutors did not confront the witnesses or defendants with these documents and did not include them in the investigation either. “The Public Prosecution insisted that there was no land booking,” Shaaly said.

“What my client collected are his dues from some transactions in Australia and he informed Nakheel in 
writing and had its approval to collect those dues.”

He further said that there was a committee within Nakheel, comprising many members, and charged it with approving and signing land sale agreements pertaining to Waterfront, not just his client.

Prosecutor Khaled Al Zarouni 
rebutted by saying that they did take all the presented documents into 
consideration.

Counsel Eissa Bin Haidar, representing the plaintiff Sunland, asked the court for some time to prepare a modified list with more witnesses.

Ali Al Shamsy, counsel for the former commercial operation manager of Waterfront, requested bail on grounds of deteriorating health of his client. “My client is based along with his family in Dubai. His provisional detention is unjustified,” Al Shamsy said.

Presiding Judge Al Saeed Bargouth denied the two defendants bail and adjourned to the next hearing on October 20. The discrepancy came to light in 2007, when the audit department of Nakheel became suspicious upon noting that the land had been allotted to Sunland at Dh120 a square-foot, which was less than market value.

Investigation showed that Dh44.1 million had been transferred from Sunland to three parties. About Dh22 million went to the CEO’s account in a bank in Jersey, Dh3.25 million to the absconding party’s account in National Bank of Australia, and the rest to the account of an investment company in Hong Kong.

When the police searched the offices of the defendants in Nakheel, they found electronic mails on negotiations over sale price between Sunland and Waterfront.

mary@khaleejtimes.ae