Dubai: A woman employee and a technician have been accused of defaming a businesswoman, who owns a beauty spa, on Facebook and calling her a bad hairstylist and psycho.

The Polish businesswoman, who owns and runs a beauty spa in Dubai, was said to have had a labour dispute with her countrywoman [who was employed at the spa] whom she fired following a dispute in 2015.

The sacked employee [identified as M.] opened a Facebook account with a bogus name, according to records, and used it to disrepute the businesswoman.

A 33-year-old Polish woman and her 44-year-old countryman technician visited the spa’s Facebook page and posted slanderous comments in which they defamed the businesswoman and called her names.

Prosecutors accused the duo of cursing the businesswoman on a social media platform.

The suspects pleaded not guilty and refuted their charges when they appeared before the Dubai Misdemeanours Court.

According to the charge sheet, prosecutors said the woman suspect slandered the Polish businesswoman on Facebook by calling her a bad woman and a psycho. The technician was accused of slandering the beauty spa’s owner on Facebook by calling her a bad hairstylist and mocking her as well.

The businesswoman’s lawyer, Showq Al Kethiri, lodged a civil lawsuit against the Polish suspects in which her client is seeking Dh21,000 in temporary compensation against emotional, professional and moral damages.

“The suspects have offended my client and damaged her reputation before her clients when they [suspects] posted slanderous comments on Facebook about her. Facebook is a social media tool and the slurs were made public … many of my client’s clients and friends read the comments on the Facebook page. My client sustained emotional and moral damages that the suspects had intended to inflict on her when they posted those comments,” Al Kethiri argued in her civil lawsuit.

The beauty spa owner claimed to police interrogators that the incident happened shortly after she dismissed M. from work.

“Firstly, M. used her Polish mobile number to send me an SMS in which she threatened to disrepute me if I did not give her back a cheque that she had given me earlier. She sent me another SMS in which she threatened to ruin my reputation before my partners. Later she opened a Facebook account using a bogus name, through which she posted on the spa’s Facebook page slanderous comments. She claimed [on Facebook] that I am a bad boss and treated her badly. Then the 44-year-old posted a slanderous comment on Facebook. Meanwhile the 33-year-old also called me names on the same page,” the spa’s owner told the police.

The trial continues.