DUBAI // Two brothers who attacked a man with swords and a hammer before running him over and dragging him under their SUV have had their jail sentences upheld by the Appeal Court.
The court on Monday upheld the 10-year sentence for S O, 23, and three years for his brother E O, 21. Both were convicted of premeditated murder.
The Emirati brothers were part of an armed gang who chased Hasan Shakir around Oud Al Mutaina on June 29 last year.
Shakir evaded the gang by hiding between parked cars, but as he ran off the two brothers saw him and drove after him in their SUV.
The older brother took the wheel and sped after the fleeing man, smashing into two cars. They ran over Shakir then dragged him beneath the SUV for about 15 metres. The brothers then stopped the vehicle, jumped out and fled.
A G, 27, a policewoman who lived in the neighbourhood, said she clearly saw the brothers inside the car as they drove towards Shakir.
“Only four metres were between me and them,” she said, testifying the driver did not hesitate or slow down before hitting him.
Police arrived to find a crowd surrounding Shakir’s bloodied body. The brothers were seen nearby and when police arrested them, the enraged crowd tried to assault the two.
The older brother was found to be bleeding heavily from his back and blood covered the driver’s seat. A blood-stained hammer and knife were also found in the car.
At their original trial at the Criminal Court, both denied the charge and claimed that they killed Shakir by accident. But they were convicted last July.
salamir@thenational.ae
