He reportedly threatened to send these photos to her family, unless she gave him money.
A 28-year-old man is facing trial at the Dubai Court of First Instance after he allegedly blackmailed a woman and duped her of Dh194,000.
Court documents show that the Jordanian man, a sales executive, got hold of the complainant's mobile phone, where photos of her without a hijab (head scarf) are saved.
He reportedly threatened to send these photos to her family, unless she gave him money.
The man also allegedly told her that he could file police reports against her father in Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
The complainant, a 29-year-old Jordanian programmer, said she met the defendant when she was looking for a place to stay.
"He met me twice at restaurants and then asked for my father's number in Saudi Arabia, claiming he would seek his approval for our marriage. He later booked a room for me at a hotel."
On September 5 last year, when he dropped her off at her workplace, she forgot to get her phone from him.
"He would not give it back to me. He took me out instead to buy an expensive smartphone, saying mine was old." She recounted that she stayed for three days at the hotel and during that time, he stole her credit card.
"He used the card to book a plane ticket for me to Jordan. Then, I travelled and while I was there, he started asking me for money, citing urgent need," she said.
When the total amount he took from her reached over Dh194,000, she decided to inform her father, who advised her to go back to the UAE and file a complaint.
"When I stopped paying him any more money, he threatened he would expose me and ruin my reputation. He said he had my mobile phone with all my family and friends' numbers and my photos without a hijab."
A police sergeant said they arrested the defendant in a sting operation. "We were tipped off that he would book rooms at hotels using women's credit cards. We learnt later that there were several similar complaints against him." He had duped a Brazilian woman and other women in Sharjah and across the other emirates, the officer said.
The trial will continue on September 22.
SOURCE : KHALEEJTIMES