Dubai:

A carpenter has been sentenced to ten years in jail for killing his friend by repeatedly punching him during a scuffle.

The Dubai Court of First Instance jailed the 29-year-old Bangladeshi defendant, H.R., for seven years for killing his countryman, M.S., and three years for stealing his mobile phone and wallet.

Prosecutors accused H.R. of killing M.S. by repeatedly punching his face and chest until he fell on the ground unconscious.

The defendant was said to have stolen the victim’s mobile phone and wallet.

When the defendant appeared in court, he pleaded guilty to beating the victim but denied having had any intention of killing him.

The accused will be deported.

Prosecution records said a Bangladeshi cleaner found M.S.’s body under a tree in Dubai Investment Park.

An Emirati policeman testified that primary interrogations led to H.R.’s arrest the next day.

The defendant claimed, during questioning by prosecutors, that he met M.S. by coincidence at a bus station at 10.30pm. “He was very drunk and asked me to walk him home.

“We walked for a while before I noticed that he had wet his pants. When I asked him why he did so, M.S. cursed me and my family. We indulged in a heated argument that started a fight.

“He repeatedly cursed me before I threw several punches at his face. Then he fell to the ground and continued cursing me. I knelt down and continued punching him, I stopped punching him because I realised that M.S. was breathing heavily and bleeding from his face,” the defendant said.

H.R. added: “I took away his wallet and mobile phone, then left him and walked away.”

The policeman said the cleaner called police when he found the dead body at around 10.30am. Police interrogators and a forensic doctor rushed to the scene.

The doctor’s report showed injuries to the head, face and chest as the cause of death.

The policeman claimed that primary interrogations exposed the involvement of H.R., who was arrested in Palm Jumeirah.

“At first he denied his involvement and said he did not know the victim until the incident. Then he admitted that he had punched the victim and taken his phone and wallet that contained Dh25.

Police tracked down the defendant after he used the victim’s SIM card and communicated with an Asian person,” stated the policeman.

Monday’s judgement remains subject to appeal within 15 days.