Dubai : The Dubai Cassation Court has upheld the death sentence meted out to a 23-year-old Bangladeshi driver who was found guilty of brutally killing his friend due to a financial dispute.
"The court has unanimously confirmed the death sentence against the defendant," Presiding Judge Mohammad Nabeel Riyadh said in court room 22 yesterday morning.
The Dubai Attorney-General will soon refer the case to the Ruler's Court for endorsement before the capital punishment is carried out.
The Appeals Court earlier dismissed the petition of Mohammad Shehabuddine Haji Amir Hamzah, who sought to overturn a lower court's decision that found him guilty of committing premeditated murder associated with theft, prompting him to elevate his case before the Cassation Court.
Hamzah was likewise charged with threatening to kill the victim's cousin and of stealing the victim's mobile phone and wallet.
Final judgement
Yesterday's judgment is final and can no longer be subject to appeal.
Prosecutors said Hamzah planned the killing of the victim identified as M.Y., also a Bangladeshi, whom he lured to a sandy spot behind the Gold Souq to purportedly resolve their financial dispute.
When the victim arrived at their meeting place, the accused kicked him hard in the groin. After M.Y. collapsed, Hamzah locked him up inside a refrigerated truck used to transport fish and kept him there for four hours.
Hamzah then drove the truck to a mosque near the Dubai-Al Ain Road. He took the victim out of the truck, stabbed him in the back and chest and slit his throat before leaving the body under a tree.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to the murder charge.
"I am not guilty. I did not intend to kill him. We beat up each other. I still cannot remember what really happened on that day because I was drunk. But we exchanged blows," Hamzah said during his trial.
A police lieutenant testified that the defendant was arrested after the victim's cousin reported the crime.
"When I asked the defendant about my cousin, he got angry and threatened to kill me," the victim's cousin said.
