Emirates Airline worker 'stole half a million dirhams'

DUBAI // An Emirates Airline employee stole nearly half a million dirhams from the company, a court heard yesterday. RM, a 25-year-old Emirati collection officer, is accused of taking the money from the company's cash box at Dubai International Airport. An Iranian officer in the airline's anti-fraud section told prosecutors he received a tip-off from an employee in March that money was being stolen from the accounting department. 

The Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance heard that a company audit found RM had stolen more than Dh465,000 over a period of several months. According to prosecutors, she deducted cash from funds collected by Emirates for visa delivery, excess baggage, cancelled tickets, Marhaba services and porter services. RM collected the cash as part of her job, but instead of passing it on she kept some and destroyed the receipts.

RM denied the charges before Presiding Judge Hamad Abdel Latif.   She is to appear in court again on October 21. * The National