DUBAI // Dubai Islamic Bank's chief executive testified in the Criminal Courts yesterday that the bank's board of directors were "indifferent" when findings of fraud were brought to them in 2007. Abdullah al Hamli told Judge Hamad Abdel Latif that no immediate action was taken on the allegations. Seven people are charged in the case, two of whom are former employees of the bank. All have pleaded not guilty.
"I was present when the findings of the fraud claims were presented to the board of directors," Mr al Hamli said. "Their reaction shocked me; they were indifferent to the findings. They did not take immediate legal action which infuriated me. They are supposed to do so when it's an amount like US$500 million [Dh1.8bn]." Mohammed Mustafa Hussein, the director of the financial audit department of Dubai Government, appeared for the first time yesterday in the DIB case.
The defence's request that Mr Hussein provide the full documentation that led to his findings was granted by the court. amustafa@thenational.ae