An Abu Dhabi criminal court has convicted two men of disrupting public order on a public road, sentencing both to 6 months in prison, fining one of them 100,000 dirhams, and ordering the confiscation of the vehicle used in the incident.
The first defendant had driven a vehicle fitted with warning lights exclusive to emergency vehicles, while the second defendant participated in installing the emergency systems device, without either holding legal authorisation from the competent authorities to use such equipment.
In detail, the court sentenced the first defendant to 6 months in prison and ordered the confiscation of his vehicle after convicting him of disrupting public order by driving a vehicle equipped with warning lights designated for emergency vehicles on a public road without legal authorisation to use them.
The court also convicted the second defendant, the manager of a company specialising in the trade of security systems, after it was established that he had fitted the first defendant's vehicle with the emergency systems device without holding authorisation to do so. He was sentenced to 6 months in prison, fined 100,000 dirhams, and the company's inventory related to the goods sold to the first defendant was ordered confiscated.
The incident dates back to the detection of a vehicle travelling on a public road fitted with warning lights designated exclusively for emergency vehicles. Based on a security report and an examination of smart surveillance systems and monitoring and control cameras, the offending vehicle was identified and its driver apprehended, as it emerged that he had not obtained any legal permit allowing him to use such designated equipment.
Investigations led to the commercial establishment that had supplied and installed the security and warning systems on the first defendant's vehicle. The manager responsible for the establishment was subsequently apprehended, and both parties were referred to the Abu Dhabi Public Prosecution, which conducted the investigation into the incident, charged them with committing an act liable to disrupt public order, and then referred them to the competent court.