Man sentenced to six months for "disturbing UAE security officials"

An Emirati man has been sentenced to six months in prison on charges of "disturbing security officials" and another referred to counselling for posing a "terrorist risk", the State Security Court of the Federal Supreme Court ruled on Monday.

The court sentenced the second defendant, Tareq Naseer, to six months of counselling and a travel ban. He is to remain under supervision for the six-month period.

Before the decision was made, the judge asked O.B., who was found with the money in his home, about its source.
 
“Some of it is my own and some is for my family. After my father’s death, his wife and my siblings all inherited it. I am currently investing it in the Dubai financial market’s stocks and real estate through an investment office that I am running as of several years ago,” the accused O.B. said.

When asked about whether the funds or a part of it belong to the Yemeni Muslim Brotherhood, the defendant said: “I own all the money and it does not belong to the organisation, nor does any part of it go back to any individual from the organisation.”

The judge asked O.B. about the confession he made before the prosecution where he stated that the money belongs to the Yemeni Muslim Brotherhood.

“I made my confession under psychological, physical and unnatural mental duress and I did not mean a word of what I said at the time,” O.B. said.

The court heard lawyers of the defendants, who demanded that they be cleared of all charges for lack of evidence.