Dubai Police recover Dh1.1m of diamonds after bag mix-up at airport

The National

3 days ago

Dubai Police have successfully recovered a bag containing diamond jewellery worth Dh1.1 million ($300,000) after a merchant mistakenly picked up another passenger's luggage at the airport.
The diamond merchant, a Dubai resident, was travelling to another Gulf country to take part in a trade exhibition. He was travelling with four bags of diamonds but one was mixed up and ended up with someone else.
'The merchant put the bags on the airport's scanner and [then] picked up the wrong bag by mistake,' the force said. "The bag was similar to one belonging to a passenger travelling to Bangladesh."
The diamond dealer did not notice he had taken the wrong bag and found out only after arriving at his destination.
'The merchant was surprised when he opened the bag on arrival to see a pile of clothes," the police added. "He returned the bag quickly to Dubai and filed a case."
Dubai Police used surveillance cameras at the airport to identify the passenger who had collected the dealer's bag.
'The Bangladeshi passenger took the merchant's bag by mistake thinking it was his because it was very similar,' they said.
The authority managed to recover the diamonds with the help of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the UAE embassy in Dhaka and authorities in Bangladesh. The merchant thanked Dubai Police for their work in helping to return the bag.
'There are no words to thank the force for their efforts to recover the bag and the jewellery,' he said. "Dubai Police are keen to spread happiness among society."