An expat worker was issued with a $136,000 (AED500,000) after being found guilty of insulting Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).

The defendant failed a driving test and sent an email to the RTA saying that it took “poor people’s money by making them intentionally fail in driving tests and forcing them to repeat the tests”.

The authority reported the email to Dubai Police and a case was lodged with Dubai Court of First Instance, Gulf News reported.

The man pleaded not guilty to the charge of mocking and offending a government department, and said the email was sent out of frustration over failing the driving test.

In addition to the fine, the defendant was jailed for three months. The judgement remains subject to appeal within 15 days.