Man jailed for life after killing friend in financial dispute

Dubai Criminal Court heard that defendant stabbed victim then buried him with help of another friend

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A man was jailed for life for stabbing a former friend to death in a dispute over money.

In Bur Dubai, on October 13 last year, the unemployed Pakistani, 40, stabbed his compatriot, also 40, in the neck.

Dubai Criminal Court heard that the defendant severed the victim's spinal cord then watched him die before calling a Pakistani friend, 30, to help him bury the body.

They took it to the friend's car then drove to Al Sajaa, an industrial area in Sharjah, where they dug a grave.

When the victim did not show up for work and could not be reached, a colleague filed a missing persons report at Bur Dubai Police station.

An investigation was started and officers deduced that the last person seen with the victim was the defendant.

"We arrested him and, during questioning, he admitted killing the victim over a financial dispute," an Emirati officer said.

Details of the dispute were not disclosed in court records.

“He said he stabbed him in the back of the neck and pulled the knife sideways, cutting through the victim's neck, before he stood close and watched him die,” the policeman said.

Police arrested the accomplice, who said the victim was dead when he arrived and that he was too afraid to report the incident to police.

“The pair couldn’t bury the body at Jebel Ali area, so they decided to drive to Sharjah,” the officer said.

Police were led to the burial site more than a month after the killing.

A forensic team was called and  a medical report confirmed that the victim's spine had been severed.

The older defendant was convicted of premeditated murder and sentenced to life in prison.

His accomplice was sentenced to five years for helping to conceal the body.

Both men will be deported after they have served their jail terms.