Recently, undercover Dubai police caught a gang of four guys who were targeting people at Dubai Mall to steal their stuff. We had to send officers out there because we were seeing more pickpocketing, especially in busy spots like the mall.
These guys, aged 23 to 54, got busted on March 6, 2024. They had a whole plan worked out, you know? On the day of the theft, they zeroed in on the dancing fountain area, where they knew the crowd would be distracted. While one guy kept an eye on the victim, two others created diversions, and the fourth snatched a phone from her bag.
They tried to scatter when they saw us coming, but we nabbed them right there. They had ditched the phone, but lucky for us, the surveillance cameras and our undercover officers caught everything.
In court, one of our officers said, “We had to start using undercover teams because of all the pickpocketing, especially at Dubai Mall.” The guys denied everything during the investigation and in court, but the evidence was clear. They each got a month in jail and got kicked out of the country for forming a gang and stealing in busy public places.