DUBAI // A man who killed a labourer in a mugging gone wrong was today sentenced to five years in prison.
AA, a 41-year-old Pakistani salesman, had been posing as a policeman when he stopped NR, a Bangladeshi labourer, and asked for his identification card. When the labourer produced his wallet, the salesman snatched it, took the money and ran away.
The labourer then chased the salesman to a dark alley where a tussle ensued, during which he sustained a fatal head injury.
The salesman pleaded not guilty at the Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance. Defending himself, he told Judge Hamad Abdul Lati: "I am not responsible for his death. I didn't pose as a policeman and I didn't steal his money."
However, a Bangladeshi cleaner said he and a group of others saw the salesman stopping the labourer, adding that he appeared to be drunk. "I tried to convince him to let the man go," said the cleaner, adding that the salesman pushed him away and fled.
The salesman was identified through a photograph police found at the scene.
He will be deported following the completion of his prison term.
salamir@thenational.ae
