The case of the theft of $610 million from British National's company KMHoldings is very simple,

The case of the theft of $610 million from British National's company KMHoldings is very simple, but very complex at the same time. What happened is straightforward; how it happened is complicated.

Background: British National Mr Haddad was Managing Partner of KM Holdings. His local business partner offered him a low amount to buy out his shareholding. He declined and so in retaliation, the assets of the company were wrongfully gifted to the cousin of the ruler of Dubai, including Mr Haddad’s 50% shareholding.

Essentially, what we are talking about is the theft of 250 million pounds, and the convoluted manner in which this was achieved mustn't obscure the fact that what occurred was a theft.

Mr. Haddad's assets ended up in the hands of Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa bin Saeed Al Maktoum, first cousin of the Ruler of Dubai. These assets were delivered to him by means of a variety of dodgy court proceedings in which Habib Al Mulla, another close associate of the Dubai Ruler, flagrantly violated every standard of legal protocols and procedures, including representing Mr. Haddad (as the Plaintiff!) without his authorisation on 21 occasions while also representing the Respondent, Haddad's business partner. The judges went along with it, no doubt assuming that Al Mulla was acting under the auspices of the Royal Family. Al Mulla could have showed up in court with a sock puppet playing the role of Mr. Haddad, and the court would have accepted it.

We are talking about a system in which everyone wants to please and garner favour with the Royal Family; to the extent that police, prosecutors, lawyers, and judges will collude in blatantly criminal conduct if they think the ruling family will be gratified.

It is possible that Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa was not an accomplice in the theft of Mr. Haddad's assets; that Mr. Haddad's business partner and Habib Al Mulla, the courts and judges, all were acting on their own with the aim of winning the Sheikh's favour by gifting him 500 million pounds of corporate assets, half of which belong to Mr. Haddad. But, if that is the case, it falls upon the Royal Family to rectify the situation, return the assets, and use this case as an opportunity to correct the system's inclination to discard the rule of law in pursuit of the Ruler's good graces.