Judge rejects killer's appeal

A driver jailed for 15 years for slashing a prostitute to death with a machete has lost his appeal.

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DUBAI // A driver jailed for 15 years for slashing a prostitute to death with a machete has lost his appeal. MR, 24, a Bangladeshi, was found guilty in March of premeditated murder and theft. Judge Mahmoud al Shinawi confirmed the verdict and sentence at the Dubai Court of Appeals yesterday. The original trial at the Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance heard that MR met Li Bing Ma, from China, on August 16 last year while walking in the Naif district of Deira. He said she offered him sex for Dh25, and they went to her flat. He also claimed Ms Li demanded more money and pushed him. Enraged, he struck her repeatedly with a machete he found lying in the flat.

Four days later a resident of Ms Li's building called the police complaining of a foul smell coming from her flat. Police found her body lying in a pool of blood. A police task force was set up to investigate the murder. Sources told police that two men had been seen with the victim before her death. A Bangladeshi, SI, was arrested and found to be in possession of Ms Li's mobile phone. He told police it had been given to him by MR.

Police arrested M R, who confessed to the murder, the court was told. amustafa@thenational.ae