Dubai: A suspect will undergo sanity assessment to decide whether he was liable for attempting to kill his ex-wife by dousing concentrated sulphuric acid on her.

The 44-year-old Emirati man was said to have walked into the clinic where his countrywoman worked in September 2015 before locking the door from inside and dousing her with the acid, which he had concealed in a shampoo bottle.

The former wife screamed out for help and told security to pull the man out of her office as he tried to pour the acid on her head.

On Sunday, the Dubai Court of First Instance’s presiding judge Mohammad Jamal said the Emirati suspect will be admitted to a hospital where a committee of psychiatrists are expected to examine his mental state and decide whether he was aware of his actions at the time when he tried to kill his wife.

The case was scheduled for a judgement on Sunday, however, it was postponed after presiding judge Jamal sought a medical report to be submitted on December 19.

Swift medical intervention saved the life of the woman who, according to medical reports, sustained second-degree and third-degree burns.

Dubai Police apprehended the suspect after the incident.

According to the charges, the suspect had intended to kill his ex-wife and caused 80 per cent burns to her skin besides 31 per cent third-degree burns.

The ex-husband pleaded guilty and apologised for what he had done to his ex-wife when he defended himself in court.

“I am mistaken, I should not have done that. I did not have any intention to kill the mother of my five children … we lived together for 15 years,” he told the court.

According to Sunday’s decision, the suspect remains in custody.

The ex-wife testified to prosecutors that once her former husband arrived at her office, she called the security to prevent him.

“He stopped the guard and locked the door from inside. He took out a green shampoo bottle and doused me with a burning liquid — he poured it on my face and body,” she said.

The Egyptian security guard testified before prosecutors that the suspect applied yoghurt on his hands because he had burned his own hands while trying to douse the woman with acid.

A police lieutenant told prosecutors: “Witnesses saw the suspect being treated at the clinic’s emergency room after he had burnt his own hands; he was also heard saying ‘I wish I had slaughtered her and gotten rid of her.’”