UAE: Criminal court sends Lawyer to jail for tax invasion, money laundering

The accused Asim Ghafoor, an American citizen, was found guilty of two counts of tax evasion and money laundering by the Abu Dhabi Criminal Court, which has jurisdiction over offenses including money laundering and tax evasion. He was sentenced to three years in prison, a fine of Dh3 million, and expulsion from the UAE because of a tax evasion scheme in his nation.

The investigation into the accused for tax evasion and making questionable money transfers to the state, as well as their search into his bank accounts receiving those payments and connected transactions, led to the American authorities asking for judicial help.

The UAE Public Prosecution (PP) in Abu Dhabi began its procedures to implement and study the judicial assistance request and verify the nature of the financial transactions related to the aforementioned accounts and bank transfers and discovered suspicion of a crime involving money laundering that took place in the nation due to the accused's making international transfers without providing evidence of their source.

The accused was referred in absentia to the Abu Dhabi Criminal Court on charges of tax evasion and money laundering, and the court issued an in absentia ruling punishing him with three years in prison, a fine of Dh3 million, and deportation based on the findings of the Public Prosecution's investigations.

The United States and the UAE worked together to combat transnational crimes, which resulted in the arrest of the accused and his presentation to the Abu Dhabi Criminal Court in accordance with the established legal procedures. The UAE Public Prosecution applauded this cooperation.