RAK police warn public about sorcery fraudsters

Everyone needs a hand from time to time, however police in Ras Al Khaimah are warning the public not to turn to witchcraft if they need help.

The call follows the arrest of four Arab women last week who were caught practising sorcery.

The suspects were allegedly paid huge sums of cash by victims who thought the sorcerers could solve their problems.

Colonel Salem Sultan Al Darmaki, chief of the Criminal Investigation Department at RAK Police, said the women were arrested in the Nakheel area after officers set up a sting.

An Arab woman had complained to police about three women practising witchcraft.

“The complainant herself was arrested after the police suspected her of being involved in the illegal activities,” said Al Darmaki. A female undercover agent then contacted the women, claiming her husband wanted to leave her for another woman.

The suspects allegedly agreed to help solve her problem using magic. Police officers then raided their apartment and arrested three women, along with an Emirati man who was also present.

Police said they also seized a large quantity of herbs, alcoholic drinks and other materials used in sorcery.

The suspects allegedly admitted to targeting people to exhort money from them. They promised men they could double their money using black magic, while the female victims wanted them to fix rocky relationships or help them find a husband.

RAK Police also said there has been an increase in reports from women claiming they had been conned through sorcery. Officers urged people not to be duped by any sort of witchcraft.

A source from police said that in another recent case a 40-year-old Arab woman complained that her husband left her and their five children after he was bewitched.

The woman said she later found out her husband was seeing another woman. She divorced him when she discovered he had actually married the ‘witch’. Al Darmaki urged people to inform the police if they come across anyone practising sorcery as such activities are illegal and punishable by law.

ismail@7days.ae