LONDON: Former security officers at the UAE Embassy in London have appeared in court over the theft of cash and documents, and a £3 million ($4,146,000) blackmail plot to return them.
Lee Hurford, 48, is accused of stealing from the embassy when he worked there in 2018. As well as cash, he is alleged to have stolen paperwork, documents, receipts and an identity card, and orchestrated a £3 million blackmail plot for the return of the items.
His co-defendant Dean Manister, 50, was head of the building’s security at the time, and faces charges including blackmail for assisting Hurford in the plot.
At a pre-trial hearing, both Hurford and Manister denied the charges and were granted bail. The date for their two-week trial was set for April 4, 2022.
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