He has held senior roles driving revenue growth at several global media brands
uae1 day ago
Though the police did not identify the man or the country where he was arrested, an official who spoke with Khaleej Times on condition of anonymity said he was an Egyptian, and was arrested from a Cairo hotel. The man was hired by a businessman to kill her for $2 million. Khaleej Times could not independently confirm this.
The 31-year-old popular singer was found dead in her apartment in Al Rimal Tower of the Jumeirah Beach Residences on July 28. The suspect fled the country 90 minutes after the murder.
Addressing a press conference in Dubai on Sunday, Acting Chief of Dubai Police, Major-General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, did not divulge the details about the 39-year-old suspect but said he was arrested in an Arab country. The Dubai Police have requested his extradition as soon as possible.
Al Mazeina said the case has ended, but the investigations are on in the country where he was arrested to determine the motive of the murder. The suspect's extradition to the UAE would depend on the legal system of the Arab country with which "we share good relations and cooperation in this case," Al Mazeina said.
Another police official, however, disclosed to Khaleej Times that the Egyptian suspect was arrested 48 hours after the murder in Dubai.
The suspect is a retired police official and was currently employed as a security official for a hotel owned by a prominent Egyptian businessman.
He said the man was arrested by the Egyptian police from a swimming pool of a hotel in Cairo on July 30. He has already confessed to the crime which he allegedly carried out at the behest of a prominent Egyptian businessman for $2 million.
The official said the suspect fled the UAE 90 minutes after the murder, but the police tracked him down with the help of evidence collected from the crime scene.
Al Mazeina told reporters that the man posed as a real estate agent to gain entry into the singer's apartment and carried out the killing in just over 12 minutes.
“Six Dubai CID officials travelled to the Arab country and handed over all relevant documents to the authorities there. The investigations are is under way in the Arab country in coordination with Dubai Police,” he said.
Al Mazeina said the murder came to light when the singer's cousin called the police around 4pm on July 28 after he found the singer's stabbed and decapitated body in her apartment.
The singer's cousin apparently felt suspicious when nobody answered the phone on Monday morning (July 28) and when he learnt that Suzan had not gone for her driving lessons. Going over to the singer's apartment, the cousin was shocked to find the door to the flat open and her body lying in a pool of blood.
The Dubai Police set up 60 teams to investigate the murder. Based on her cousin's report that Suzan had always been very cautious about opening her apartment door to strangers, Al Mazeina said, the police were convinced that the murderer was either known to the victim or she was tricked into opening the door to a complete stranger.
The building's closed circuit TV cameras had spotted the suspect. The records showed that the man had arrived in Dubai only two days before the murder took place. Although, we had closed in on the suspect, it was difficult to identify him completely because his face was covered in the camera clippings.
After committing the crime, the suspect threw away the clothes near the fire safety box on the 21st floor of the building and changed into a new outfit. The suspect also changed his travel schedule purchasing new tickets and fled the country, Al Mazeina said.
After her divorce from Ali Manzaz, Suzan had married Lebanese producer Adel Matooq but the second marriage, too hit the rocks very soon. To get away from the string of cases filed by her second husband, Matooq, she travelled secretly to Egypt from Lebanon. Eight months ago, she disappeared from Egypt only to surface in the UAE about a month ago.
Khaleej Times has learnt that Matooq had alleged attempts on his life by Suzan with the help of others in 2004. Matooq suffered injuries when some unknown assailants shot at him outside his office in Beirut. He alleged that an Egyptian businessman, with whom Suzan was having an affair, was behind the attack. The matter is still in court. Matooq also declined to divorce Suzan.
He has held senior roles driving revenue growth at several global media brands
uae1 day ago
The fox was first recorded in the country's mountains as recently as 1995 and has only been documented sporadically since
uae1 day ago
We have been blessed with newfound wealth, but others are grappling with unimaginable loss, they said
uae1 day ago
This is one of the four services launched by Mohre aimed at rectifying the status of violating workers and exempting establishments from paying fines
uae1 day ago
They were awarded certificates of appreciation after their efforts contributed to enhancing safety and security in the community
uae1 day ago
While her first few Friday morning runs were attended by only three to five women, it now attracts up to 50 per session
uae1 day ago
Heavy school bags can have emotional and mental effects on children, warn doctors
uae1 day ago
The new vehicles will be utilised to organise traffic flow and enhance security presence in tourist areas and other locations across the emirate
uae2 days ago