Sharjah Police secure assets of companies valued at AED65 billion, arrest 33 suspects from 12 nationalities

Sharjah: Sharjah Police, in cooperation with the Ministry of Interior, secured the assets of companies valued at AED65 billion and arrested 33 suspects from 12 nationalities, including the leaders of the largest organised international criminal networks in cross-border cybercrime.

Lieutenant General Abdullah Mubarak bin Amer, Commander-in-Chief of Sharjah Police, Affirmed during the media briefing held earlier this afternoon, in Sharjah Media City "Shams”, that the unwavering support, care, and ongoing follow-up of the UAE’s wise leadership, along with its directives to enhance security and stability and empower police and security institutions to fulfill their responsibilities and carry out their mission with the highest levels of efficiency and preparedness, have formed a fundamental pillar in establishing a security system capable of keeping pace with changes and challenges and enhancing the safety and stability of the society.

He added that these efforts form part of the UAE’s integrated security framework under the Ministry of Interior, and with the support and the close monitoring of Lieutenant General His Highness Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, and His Highness’ commitment to enhancing the efficiency and preparedness of police forces, developing their law enforcement and crime combating capabilities, and supporting the criminal justice system, to strengthen their ability to combat all forms of crime, particularly emerging cybercrime, organized crime, and cross-border crime, reflecting the directives of the UAE’s wise leadership to ensure the security of the society, protect the its capabilities, and reinforce the UAE’s position as a leading model of security and stability.

Lieutenant General bin Amer pointed out that the Digital Crime Combat Department in Sharjah Police uncovered the highly complex and concealed infrastructure of the organisation, whose members had made the deepest reaches of cyberspace a home for their activities. Their operations were hidden behind secret and encrypted layers, while they moved through closed networks and platforms accessible only to their members, beyond the reach of law enforcement agencies. In public, they cultivated an image of wealth, traveling between world capitals and displaying a lavish lifestyle that concealed a framework managed secretly, and they appeared to be legitimate businesspeople and investors, while their illegal activities extended across countries.

He said, "What has been achieved in this case is the result of integrated institutional work, continues security efforts, and close cooperation and coordination with federal, local and international authorities. These efforts led to the dismantling of these networks and groups, the arrest of their members, and the thwarting of their plans. This confirms the efficiency of the United Arab Emirates’ national security system and its ability to handle various cases, regardless of their complexity or whether they extend beyond its geographical borders, and to keep pace with security challenges efficiently and competently.”

He explained that the results of the security operation were not limited to arresting those involved and stopping their criminal activities but also included protecting interests and assets and limiting potential economic and security repercussions, in an operation reflected the advanced level of proactive policing, integration among the relevant agencies, and effective cooperation with partners at both the local and international levels.

He expressed his sincere thanks, appreciation, and pride to Sharjah Police officers who demonstrated the highest level of dedication, professionalism, and commitment in this operation, and carried out their duty with determination, putting the security of the UAE and the safety of society at the top of their priorities, until these qualitative security results were achieved

He commended the role of Ministry of Interior and the security agencies in supporting and coordinating the local and international efforts, enhancing the cooperation framework and facilitating the exchange of information with the relevant authorities, which contributed to the success of this operation. He emphasized that integration and cooperation are the fundamental pillars of combating cross-border organized crime, and strengthening our shared ability to address different emerging security challenges.

He also praised the role of Public Prosecution in the Emirate of Sharjah, and it continues efforts in supporting the security framework, and grounding the rule of law, establishing the foundations of justice, and safeguarding the rights of individuals and society. He emphasised the importance of institutional integration and ongoing coordination between the Public Prosecution and security and police agencies in enhancing the efficiency of the law enforcement and criminal justice system, unifying efforts to combat crime, strengthening security and stability, and improving the quality of security life in the emirate.

Commander-in-Chief of Sharjah Police revealed the details about one of the most complex cross-border security operations globally, called "END OF THE BATTLE”, resulted in the dismantling of four interconnected international criminal networks specialising in organised digital crimes, money laundering through virtual assets, digital wallet theft, online fraud and extortion through social engineering, and trafficking in compromised data over dark web networks, as well as committing violent assaults, using artificial intelligence technologies to carry out their criminal activities. The operation led to the arrest of members of these networks, whose total number was 33 members from 12 different nationalities, and arrested the heads of these networks, which contributed to preserving and protecting more than 30 company and institution worldwide and securing assets valued at more than AED65 billion, and limiting potential economic repercussions that could have affected digital asset markets worldwide. The total amount of funds confiscated also exceeded AED200 million, and subjecting more than 3000 digital wallet to auditing and verification.

He affirmed that protecting society and safeguarding its security will remain a firm priority for police agencies in the United Arab Emirates, and that anyone who attempts to exploit technologies or digital tools to commit crimes or undermine the security of individuals and the stability of society will face a vigilant security system equipped with competence, expertise and advanced capabilities. This system will spare no effort in tracking them down, arresting them and bringing them to justice, ensuring the protection of society and upholding the rule of law.

For his part, Counselor Anwar Al Harmoudi, Attorney General of Emirates of Sharjah, explained that the Public Prosecution investigations revealed a cross-border criminal organization with integrated criminal roles, beginning with seizing victims’ funds through fraud and hacking, followed by concealing the sources of illicit funds and obscuring their trails, and ultimately converting them into property and investments to give them an appearance of legitimacy. He noted that the value of the funds involved in the money laundering crimes reached AED8,825,381,741.50, which were transferred through bank accounts, digital wallets and multiple platforms, using companies and intermediaries to conceal their trails.

He added that the seriousness of the case lies in the huge amount of money involved, the precision organisation of the criminal operation, and the speed at which the proceeds were transferred across borders, making them more difficult to trace and allowing the proceeds of crime to be used within the economy under a guise of legitimacy.

The Counselor Anwar Al Harmoudi said the investigations revealed an interconnected process that began with luring victims, hacking their accounts and seizing their funds and digital assets, followed by routing the proceeds through bank accounts, digital wallets and international platforms, before investing them in real estate, luxury cars, valuable watches and jewelry. The speed at which the funds were transferred and their dispersal across multiple countries made it more difficult to trace them and identify their ultimate beneficiaries.

He explained that to reveal the criminal organization and tracing its proceeds, the Public Prosecution started a simultaneous judicial, digital and financial investigation through a team that examined more than 10,000 documents and reports, and conducted 142 reports and investigation sessions, and issued 385 decisions and 478 judicial orders, with inspection of 103 electronic devices. The case involved 33 suspects, among them 6 legal entities, and the suspects’ nationalities varied, including 12 nationalities.

The procedures reached 12 search warrants, 109 requests in coordination with the Financial Intelligence Unit, and 8 requests and procedures of international cooperation, alongside coordination with judicial, security, technical and regulatory authorities to uncover the roles involved, trace the movement of funds, freeze accounts and locate assets linked to the suspects.

The procedures resulted in the seizure of more than AED200 million, and the seizure and reserve 17 luxury cars, 29 valuable watches, jewelries, and a residential villa, two villas under construction, and two residential plots of land. The search also led to the seizure of cold digital wallets, narcotic substances, counterfeit currencies and counterfeiting tools.

An integrated criminal system

In a related context, Major General Omar Ahmed Bu Al Zoud, General Director of the General Department of Criminal Security and Ports, that the organization did not rely on a single type of criminal activity, but rather on an integrated criminal framework in which roles were distributed among four interconnected networks. The first carried out hacking operations and data theft, while the second specialized in money laundering through virtual assets. The third conducted social engineering operations and digital wallet theft, while the fourth carried out violent physical assaults aimed at forcing victims to reveal the passcodes to their digital wallets, or threatening them and harming their families, in several countries. This precise division of roles contributed to building a cross-border system that enabled the organisation to target individuals, companies and institutions while maintaining a cohesive structure and making it difficult to uncover that structure or reach its leaders.

He noted that, by gathering evidence, tracing the suspects’ digital wallets and searching in open sources, the team was able to uncover the involvement of several suspects in international crimes, acts of violence and threats in cooperation with criminal groups.

He added that, behind the scenes, officers from the Digital Crime Department were working according to highly precise plans, monitoring, tracking, analyzing, connecting the threads, identifying patterns, tracing digital evidence and coordinating with local and international partners, until all members of the networks were cornered and their leaders were brought down one after another. These efforts led to the arrest and return of the main suspects from abroad, until the criminal organization crumbled at the hands of officers who carried the responsibility for society’s security and worked day and night, believing that justice would prevail, no matter how numerous the identities, how complex the networks or how far the crimes extended across borders.

He explained that the downfall of the networks was not the end of the operation, but the beginning of uncovering the size of their financial empire. Following the arrests and searches, the raids revealed the extent of the illicit proceeds accumulated by the group members. The luxurious palaces in which they lived were seized, along with digital wallets in their possession that had recorded transactions amounting to billions, luxury vehicles, valuable watches and jewelry, sums of money, some true and some fake and electronic devices. Other assets valued at hundreds of millions were impounded.

Precise plan to apprehend the perpetrators

In his review of the operation’s details, Brigadier Dr. Khalifa Yousif Belhai, Director of Criminal Investigation Directorate in Sharjah Police, that the specialized security agencies followed threads linked to the criminal network and continued analyzing its movements until they located one of its members, a juvenile who had not reached the legal age. A digital wallet containing large sums of money was found in his possession. Investigations revealed his links to international members specializing in digital wallet theft, showing that his activities were an extension of criminal operations managed through communication channels extends across several countries. The evidence also revealed that he played a significant role in laundering money through virtual assets on behalf of those involved in fraud, hacking and online extortion.

He added that continuous monitoring, analysis, and evidence-gathering efforts led to the identification of a key link between the criminal networks, which revealed his involvement in assault, kidnapping, and digital wallet theft, as well as the possession and sale of compromised data on the dark web. He was also found to have ties to international criminal groups engaged in hacking, cyber extortion, and online fraud.

The Director of Criminal Investigation Directorate added that through a precisely planned security operation, and with the full picture and the details of the operation became clear, police teams developed a precise plan to monitor and apprehend the suspect. This happened after assessment his behavior and movements, to start a new phase of investigations.

Investigations revealed that the suspect had been planning to target individuals who owned multiple digital wallets, in collaboration with a group of foreign nationals and through a criminal plan that ensured the kidnapping of the intended victims. But the investigation team successfully foiled the plot and arrested the suspect before he could carry out his planned crimes.

Brigadier Belhai stated that the Investigations successfully identified the network's members, established the links between them, and traced the extent of their criminal activities and movements, determining their respective roles and responsibilities. He explained that the network operated under a highly structured organizational framework, with clearly defined roles and responsibilities, after reaching a concealed communication hub on a social media platform, which confirmed the close connections among them which allowed them to make their criminal activities, by using a security code that changed every eight hours to protect their criminal operations.

He noted that it consisted of leaders and members assigned specific, interconnected tasks, operating across different organisational levels to ensure the execution and continuity of its criminal activities. Some members were responsible for carrying out cyberattacks and stealing databases, which were then transferred to other members tasked with managing, sorting, and offering the stolen data for sale on the dark web, which served as a thriving marketplace for their illicit activities. The data was also used to conduct phishing and fraud schemes targeting victims through social engineering techniques supported by artificial intelligence tools. Meanwhile, other members were responsible for contacting and drawing in victims into making financial transfers, using threats and physical violence to force them into compliance.

He further explained that, in parallel, the network managed digital assets and wallets, receiving illicit proceeds in the form of cryptocurrencies obtained from victims. These funds were then distributed, transferred through multiple channels, and laundered using virtual assets before ultimately reaching network members according to their respective roles. Financial and organisational indicators also revealed the connections between those involved.

Drawing on extensive experience and dedicated efforts, the team handled the case with high professionalism, examining hundreds of digital evidences and analyzing their patterns. The security operation ultimately led to the dismantling of all four criminal networks, with their leaders and members apprehended one after another, bringing an end to one of the world's most complex cases of transnational organised crime. Through its advanced security system, the UAE has once again demonstrated its pivotal role in safeguarding the economy and strengthening security and stability.

Brigadier Dr. Khalifa Yousif Belhai, Director of Criminal Investigation Directorate in Sharjah Police expressed his gratitude and appreciation to the team behind this significant achievement, commending their exceptional professionalism, particular coordination, and proactive, systematic approach to the case. Through their thorough analysis of the smallest details, connecting its ties, and tracing its full extent until the picture was complete, including all its intricate and complex dimensions.

The team went beyond tracing evidence; they excelled at identifying and analyzing criminal patterns, linking digital and financial indicators, and transforming complex data into interconnected threads that revealed relationships between the suspects and their roles. While the suspects believed that their use of digital tools and technologies would shield them from detection and prosecution, they were confronted by highly skilled national competencies that Sharjah Police invested in, qualifying and empowering them with knowledge, expertise, and advanced tools, which enhanced their ability to proactively combat crime, unravel its complexities and methods, regardless of their level of advancement.