Briton endangered other motorist in Dubai road rage incident

DUBAI // A British motorist has been convicted of endangering the life of another driver by swerving in front of her, then slamming on his brakes until they came to a complete stop in the fast lane.

The Dubai Court of Misdemeanours heard that on January 23 this year, H H, a 49-year-old sales manager, was driving his Ford Edge on the southbound carriageway of Sheikh Zayed Road.

Russian woman E F, 37, was driving with her five children in the fast lane when H H suddenly swerved in front of her. “He suddenly overtook me and when he was in front of me, he hit his brakes hard three times and I had to slow down. Then he stopped so I had to stop on the left lane on a motorway,” she said.

She said H H got out of his car and began yelling at her.

“‘Didn’t you see my car coming behind you? Why are you driving that speed in the left hand lane?’ he asked me in very loud voice,” said E F.

She said that when she picked up her phone to call her husband, he told her that she can call whoever she wanted as he could get out of trouble easily.

He then got into his car and drove away.

E F then went to a police station where she passed on details about the car’s number plate.

Six days later, H H was charged with endangering E F’s life, which he denied.

“I had my speed control on 140km and when I saw her car, I flashed my lights but the car didn’t move away and when it reached a radar, the driver hit the brakes suddenly and slowed down,” he said.

He added that when he overtook the car, he stopped on the hard shoulder and got out of his car and spoke to her.

“I just asked her why she slowed down so suddenly and she told me she was afraid of radars. She was a very polite and nice woman,” he said.

He did not attend the hearing to enter a plea.

The court found him guilty and fined him Dh2,000.

salamir@thenational.ae