Dubai: Dubai Police have arrested a man who allegedly conned, in partnership with another person, a family of Gulf nationals of Dh1.5 million promising to extract a treasure buried in their yard. The suspect took money from the family to pay it to the “jinn who was guarding” the treasure.

Major-General Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri, Assistant Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police for Criminal Investigation Affairs, said the family paid Dh1.5 million in total to two persons on different occasions to extract the treasure from their yard.

“The African man conned the family claiming they have a treasure in their yard but it was guarded by a jinn and he needed money to buy a special liquid for the jinn so it will allow them to extract the gold treasure. It is a scam when suspects try to convince people that they have powers on jinns,” Maj-Gen Al Mansouri said.

The family head said that an African woman visited their house in their home country to treat his mother and she told them about a treasure buried in the yard and that she knew someone who could extract it.

Brigadier Salim Khalifa Al Rumaithi, director of the Criminal Investigation Department, said the woman contacted the suspect, identified as M, who visited the family’s house in that country and extracted the jewellery from the yard.

“The family members were stunned when they saw him digging out the jewellery but he buried it again saying the jinn was annoyed and asked the family to pay him money to buy a special liquid to give it to the jinn so it will allow them to extract the whole treasure,” Brigadier Al Rumaithi said.

The family paid him Dh700,000.

Days later, an African man called them saying M was detained by the jinn in Dubai and asked the family to come to meet him.

The family members — a man, his mother and aunt — came to Dubai in search of M and met the caller identified as M.M.Z, who asked them to pay Dh800,000 to release M from the detention of the jinn.

The family paid the money but alerted the police, said Colonel Salah Bu Osaiba, director of the Anti-Economic Crime Department of Dubai Police.

“They informed us about the incident and we laid a trap for M.M.Z, who was arrested,” Col Bu Osaiba said.

Dubai Police urged the public not to be scammed by such people and to inform the police if anyone contacts them offering easy money.