Obaida killer denies sexual abuse charge

Dubai - 48-year-old Jordanian defendant admitted to charges of murder and consumption of alcohol.

A man sentenced to death for sexual abuse and murder of a boy admitted to charges of murder and consumption of alcohol in the Court of Appeals on Sunday. 
The 48-year-old Jordanian defendant, Nidal Eissa Abdullah, however, denied sexual assault of the eight-year-old victim, Obaida, also a Jordanian, after kidnapping him from outside his parents' house in Sharjah.
Also read: Accused in Obaida's murder case sentenced to death
In August, a bench of the Dubai Court of First Instance unanimously sentenced Abdullah to death after convicting him of sexually assaulting and killing the child.
The court also ruled that Abdullah, should pay Dh21,000 in temporary civil damages to Obaida's family and that Abdullah's body be repatriated after execution.
Obaida's father Ibrahim Al Aqrabawi said he was satisfied as justice was finally brought to his son. He said he would visit his son's grave to tell him that his killer would be executed for what he did.
Also read: Obaida resisted his killer as much as he could
Several other members of the Jordanian child's family welcomed the verdict with tears and sighs of relief, and hugged each other, praising God and justice.
According to the verdict, the defendant was convicted of premeditated murder, kidnap, physical assault, making criminal threats, consuming alcohol without licence and drink driving, based on the solid technical evidence and witnesses presented by the public prosecution.
The accused earlier claimed in court he was not in Al Mamzar area of Dubai where he allegedly took the victim on May 20.
The defendant denied he had given a confession to the police officers or led them to where he disposed of the victim's body.
He claimed before the court that he suffered from mental and psychological problems and told the court that he did not recall anything and was not aware of what happened on the day of the incident.
Also read: Obaida died 'like a man', says grieving mother
His defence lawyer then requested that his client be examined by a medical team to determine his state of mind when he allegedly committed the crime.
Abdullah had admitted earlier that he drank five bottles of vodka before and on the day he kidnapped the victim.
Obaida was reported missing from outside his father's car workshop in Sharjah on May 20. His body was found two days later under a tree on the Academic City Road in Al Warqa area of Dubai.
It is worth mentioning that the UAE law guarantees that a convict, sitting on the death row, enjoys his full rights to appeal his conviction.
A capital punishment verdict becomes final after it is upheld by Dubai's top court, the Court of Cassation. But it has to be approved by the Dubai Ruler before it can be executed by a firing squad.
The next hearing is set for October 9.
mary@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai