Khaleej Times

‘Salesman kills lover, stuffs body in bag’

- Marie Nammour mary@khaleejtim­es.com

dubai — A salesman allegedly strangled his girlfriend to death following a heated argument and then stuffed her body in a travel bag, the Court of First Instance was told. The Lebanese defendant, 31, denied a premeditat­ed murder charge in court on Monday.

According to his statement during the public prosecutio­n investigat­ion, he had met the Vietnamese victim in August last year at a nightclub. He regularly met her at her place in Bur Dubai after that.

After coming back from a vacation, he took her on a lavish trip for four nights. One day before their return, she told him she needed to go to her home country for an urgent matter and asked him for $15,000 to pay a bank instalment for a flat she had purchased there. He gave her Dh50,000 as a loan to help her, he said.

“After coming back, she began making up problems with me. She once accused me for no logical reason, saying that I was behind the circulatio­n of her photos on Facebook. She would always start quarrels with me for no reason.

“In February, I was surprised after she asked me for Dh13,000 to open a beauty salon. She promised to make me a business partner in the venture, but she did not.”

After that, she started avoiding him, he said.

“It was like that until I went to her place around 9.30am on April 13. She treated me in a demeaning and disrespect­ful manner. I told her to

I told her to tell me frankly if she wanted to break up with me. I also told her that she should pay my money back.” The defendant

tell me frankly if she wanted to break up with me. I also told her that she should pay my money back.”

However, as he was talking to her, she acted “indifferen­tly” and walked away. “She acted busy to ignore me.”

He followed her to the bathroom, where he allegedly strangled her for about two minutes until she collapsed. He panicked and did not know what to do after he realised he had killed her.

He stuffed her body in a travel bag he found there. He then allegedly stole Dh4,500 from the victim’s wallet, her watch, earrings, bracelets and necklaces. He was later arrested by the police from his workplace.

“We found the victim’s body after her friends and family got worried about her and went to check on her. After checking the building’s CCTV footages, we tracked the accused. He had stayed at her flat till around 4pm. He exited from a rear door,” a police lieutenant said. “We arrested him on April 19.”

A forensic expert said the body was in an advanced stage of decomposit­ion when it was found. A psychologi­cal examinatio­n concluded that he was mentally sane and aware of his actions.

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