Seven years jail for man murdered friend over massage parlour card dispute

The Bangladeshi stabbed his friend to death during an argument about why he was fired from a job distributing cards for massage parlours, Dubai Criminal Court heard.

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DUBAI // A labourer who stabbed his friend to death after he was fired from a job distributing massage parlour cards has been jailed for seven years.

The Dubai Criminal Court heard that on February 27 this year, Bangladeshi A A, 37, killed his compatriot A M after they had argued earlier that day.

M A, 40, a Pakistani who witnessed the incident, said that around 10pm on the day of the murder, he was sitting in his room in the labour accommodation when he heard loud voices and shouting.

“I didn’t pay much attention because arguments happen frequently,” he said.

A few minutes later, he left his room to go out for a walk with some friends and then saw the defendant and the victim fighting.

“I saw the A A hitting the victim with his right hand then walking away but A M tried to catch him then fell on the floor screaming in pain,” he said.

“I looked at him and I noticed blood on his clothes, so I ran after the defendant but couldn’t catch him. I returned to the house, where I saw the body and a knife drenched in blood on the floor.”

Another resident, M S 46, a Bangladeshi, called the police after seeing the body on the floor.

“Earlier that day, I saw them both arguing and when I asked A A about the reasons for the argument, he told me to mind my own business. Sometime later, I went out of my room to wash my hands, only to find the victim’s bloodied body on the floor,” he said

The defendant was caught at his residence in Sharjah.

During interrogation, A A said he had known A M for a year, before they became friends about a month before the murder.

The victim called the defendant and offered him a job distributing coupons and cards for a massage parlour in return for Dh2,500.

“Five days before the murder, the victim A M gave the defendant Dh1,500 and fired him,” said F A, the Emirati policeman who interrogated him.

“Then, on the day of the murder, he called the defendant and told him to pass by to talk about prospects for another job.”

They met as the victim was preparing lunch, and their discussion turned into an argument.

A A said A M had attacked him, so he returned later on that day and stabbed him.

On Sunday, the court also ruled that A A should be deported after completing his jail term.

salamir@theantional.ae