Dubai: Four men have been jailed for 10 years each for killing a merchant by gagging him, before fleeing with Dh75,000 they took from his apartment.

The four Indian men, aged between 22 and 28, forced their way into the Pakistani merchant’s flat in April. The intruders beat up the trader and then taped his arms and legs. They gagged him with a piece of cloth and covered his mouth with tape, which impeded his breathing and caused him to suffocate, according to records. They then removed the money and fled the scene.

The Dubai Court of First Instance convicted the four men of premeditated murder and theft.

The defendants had pleaded not guilty.

Records said that two of the convicts gagged the merchant with the intention of killing him so they could steal his cash and get away.

Medical records confirmed that the cloth used as a gag caused a fracture in a neck cartilage of the merchant.

According to the primary ruling, the defendants will be deported following the completion of their punishments.

A police lieutenant said that police found the victim’s body lying on the floor in his flat in Naif.

“When we inspected the flat, we discovered the merchant’s body taped from neck to feet. His mouth was taped and there was a cloth gag inside it. The flat had been ransacked and it was obvious that the culprits had killed the victim and stolen his valuables. Primary interrogations revealed that two of the defendants had been involved in the murder and had left for India; the remaining two defendants’ identity was also exposed. We apprehended one of them. During questioning, the latter said that one of the absconders called him up three days before the incident and suggested he participate in robbing the victim. On the day of the incident, the defendants prepared a bag that contained handcuffs, tape and Vicks — they rubbed Vicks into the merchant’s eyes after taping him.

“When the defendants tried to subdue the merchant the first time and tried to tie his hands, he managed to wriggle free and cried loudly for help. Then one of them gagged him with a cloth and then they taped his mouth. They took the victim’s wallet and got the key to the safe. They took the money and, before they left the flat, they sealed all the windows and increased the TV volume so that nobody would hear the victim’s cries for help. Then they absconded and split the money among themselves,” the lieutenant said.

The primary ruling remains subject to appeal within 13 days.