Legal consultant Mohamed Fikry confirmed that a beggar’s claim of a physical disability in order to exploit the month of Ramadan and give to fasting people is considered an aggravating circumstance for the imprisonment penalty imposed by UAE law on this type of crime.
Legal consultant Fikry urged via “24” to avoid dealing with beggars and encouraging them to do this illegal act based on exploiting people, calling for donating money to the specialized authorities in the country.
He explained that the UAE punishes under Article 475 of Federal Decree-Law No. 31 of 2021 on crimes, which imposes a prison sentence of no more than 3 months and a fine of no less than 5,000 dirhams, noting that this article increases the penalty when a beggar fakes injury or disability to deceive people and gain their sympathy.
He explained that the aggravation also includes, in addition to imprisonment, the confiscation of money or property used in begging, and deportation from the country after serving the prison sentence.
