Dubai, Nov 9 (AP) A top prosecutor in the United Arab Emirates has called for the detention of the chairman of Dubai-based real estate developer Union Properties while an investigation into the company is underway, according to a disclosure filed by the company late Monday.

The disclosure, posted on the Dubai Financial Market stock exchange website, included the Arabic letter from the public prosecutor for public funds informing of the decision to order the detention of Khalifa Hassan al-Hammadi, chairman of the board of directors of Union Properties, pending investigation.

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The letter added that the case remains under investigation.

Union Properties said in a subsequent disclosure that its board of directors held a meeting and discussed “the routine and operational matters of the company,” without elaborating.

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Last month, Emirati prosecutors announced they'd launched a major investigation into Union Properties over allegations the company had committed fraud and other offenses while trying to claw its way out of debt.

The investigation involved allegations that the firm sold property at less than its real value and hid the name of the beneficiary of the sale, as well as allegations of forging documents and other violations.

A stock market filing by Union Properties identified a March 2020 transaction in which Amna al-Hammadi purchased a property for 30 million dirhams ($8.1 million) that had been earlier valued at 49.5 million dirhams ($13.4 million).

Previous filings on the London Stock Exchange identified Amna as Khalifa al-Hammadi's sister.

Union Properties' filing sought to explain the sale by noting it came amid “the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and its accompanying negative effects — and in light of the company's commitment to settle its debt towards its lenders.”

Union Properties piled on some $2 billion of debt during Dubai's financial crisis over a decade ago. The company had nearly $500 million in debt at the end of last year, according to their financial filings. (AP)

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