Sentence upheld for man who ran gambling den and brothel in his Dubai villa

DUBAI // A man who appealed against a one-year jail term for running a brothel, gambling den and nightclub at his rented villa has lost his appeal.

The 34-year-old Chinese man, H Z, stood trial last September along with four Chinese women – T Y, 31, H Y, 30, Y J, 25, and Z T, 24.

The women were charged with prostitution but were found not guilty.

Prosecutors said police responded to a report of an assault at the villa in Abu Hail after several drunk customers started fighting and one was hit on the head and injured by a sharp tool.

When police arrived, in the early hours of May 23, 2012, they noticed that two rooms in the villa had been turned into a nightclub, while one was being used as a bar, selling alcohol to men.

Two other rooms were being used for gambling, while the remaining four rooms were used by prostitutes, prosecution records state.

Emirati policeman K G, 25, said there were cameras installed all over the villa and that “we found great quantities of liquor”. He added that more than Dh30,000 in cash was found, which was suspected to be profits from the man’s illegal businesses.

At Dubai Criminal Court, H Z was sentenced to a year to be followed by deportation. He had appealed against the original verdict but lost on Wednesday, so his sentence and deportation will be upheld.

salamir@thenational.ae