Dubai man's life-term upheld for murdering man for sexual assault

Picture used for illustrative purposes alone

The Court of Appeals has upheld the life-term verdict awarded to a security guard by a lower court for the premeditated murder of a flat mate.
The 45-year-old Egyptian man denied in the court having planned the attack in advance.
After the Court of First Instance jailed him for life and ordered in November that he be deported after serving the life sentence (25 years), the public prosecution pushed for death penalty at the appellate court.
According to prosecution records, he was under the influence of alcohol when he committed the crime on December 18, 2015.
"He said he wanted to kill the victim, a Nepalese, and would have beheaded him if given the chance. He claimed he planned the attack two days earlier after he suspected the victim sexually assaulted him while he was asleep," a police lieutenant said.
A Nepali waitress, 32, said that she and her colleague heard screams for help coming from another flat which was rented by the hotel where they worked. They then saw their workmate lying down badly injured. They went later to give a statement at Al Qusais police station. A police lieutenant said the accused admitted he waited for other flatmates to leave to attack the victim with a knife.
"He said he took the victim by surprise while the latter was playing on a tablet. He first thought about killing him with a liquor bottle but was worried it would not do the job. He stabbed him with a kitchen knife in the chest and abdomen. The victim tried to walk to the door screaming for others' help. The accused left him and sat smoking a cigarette until the cops arrived and arrested him." The victim died on the way to hospital. The guard may challenge the ruling at the Court of Cassation within 30 days.
mary@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai