In a classic example of the Arab regime splurging on materialistic things just to satisfy their personal interests, Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum reportedly tried to purchase one of the most expensive properties in Britain. Reason being the property overlooked his ex-wife’s estate.
A senior British judge ruled this a “deliberate act” of “intimidation” on part of the Sheikh.
Real estate agents overviewing the deal on behalf of Mohammed were just weeks away from finalizing the contract for the £30 million ($41 million) Parkwood estate, before the ruler’s team had a change of mind and pulled out.
According to news agency Reuters, his estranged wife, Jordanian Princess Haya bint al-Hussein, had raised the matter with the High Court in London as part of the long, bitter legal battle between the two royals.
“There can be no doubt that this deliberate behaviour, both in negotiating a purchase and then withholding information about it, by those who are acting for the benefit of the Dubai ruling family, will have had the effect of intimidating this mother to a very marked degree,” the judge said in his ruling that was published on Wednesday.
Haya alleged that she feared the estate plans would have allowed the Sheikh, who also reportedly “hacked her and her lawyers’ phones”, to either spy on her or attempt to kidnap their two children.