Man jailed for killing co-worker over lost mobile phone in Dubai

Dubai - The court ordered the defendant's deportation after he completed his jail term.

A worker, who assaulted his colleague during a fight over a lost mobile phone that led to his death, has been sentenced to five years in jail by the Dubai Court of First Instance. 
The court found the 33-year-old worker, an Asian, guilty of assaulting the victim and unintentionally causing his death. Both were drunk at the time. 
Public prosecution records show that the incident happened on December 13 last year when the defendant punched and kicked the victim repeatedly in the chest. 
He denied having meant to kill the victim, claiming he just wanted to scare him off. The man said both were drunk at the time and that the victim was insulting him.
The court ordered the defendant's deportation after he completed his jail term.
A 41-year-old Indian mechanic, who stands as a witness in the case, said during investigation that the victim was his friend and that he would often visit him in Al Quoz to hang out and drink alcohol together.
"On the day of incident, I found him sitting in the back of a truck with the defendant and another Indian man. They were all drinking liquor. I went away for a while and when I came back, I could not find my mobile phone."
When the defendant told the witness that the victim took the phone, the latter denied taking it and a fight then broke out between the two men. "I saw the defendant kicking the victim in the chest, knocking him down. We all left the victim behind shortly later."
The witness came back to check on the victim two days later and was surprised to find he had died. "The police summoned me for questioning and I told them what I had seen."
A police lieutenant said that they received a report about a man found dead in the trailer of a pickup truck in a parking lot in Al Quoz. "He was lying on his back. The owner of the truck said he did not know the victim or the defendant. He claimed he had parked his vehicle there few days back."
The lieutenant added that a witness then arrived and said he was the victim's friend. "He was crying and recounted how they were sitting together on the incident day and that defendant stomped on the victim's chest."
The police located and arrested the accused about two days later. "The accused claimed he assaulted the victim by punching and kicking him all over his body after the latter insulted him and his parents. He alleged he only knew that the victim died after the police apprehended him," the officer told the public prosecution investigator.
According to the forensic report, the victim was under the influence of alcohol when he received bruises and injuries in the chest, neck and head.  
The court ruling has been appealed.
mary@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai