Dubai: A judge on Monday ordered that a man suspected of sexually assaulting and killing an eight-year-old boy be forced to attend his trial after he refused to appear for Monday’s court hearing.
The 49-year-old Jordanian suspect, Nidal Eisa Abdullah, refused to be brought from his detention and be produced before the Dubai Court of First Instance despite having attended his first hearing and pleaded guilty.
“Nidal Eisa Abdullah,” presiding judge Urfan Omar called out in courtroom three before jail wardens told him that the suspect had refused to attend the trial.
“Is there a written refusal?” the presiding judge asked.
“Yes your honour, there is a written document confirming that he has refused to attend today’s trial,” secretary Essam Ali Mohammad told the judge.
Last week, Abdullah admitted that he had sexually assaulted and murdered the Jordanian boy Obaida Sedqi but contended that he did not kidnap him. He alleged that the boy willingly sat with him in the car “like he usually did”.
Prosecutors are seeking the death sentence for Abdullah, who is accused of luring the boy to his car by offering to buy him a scooter and then driving to Al Mamzar area where he sexually assaulted and killed him in May.
Abdullah’s court-appointed lawyer Hassan Juma Al Raisi deputed a colleague to represent him during the hearing and to collect the photocopy of the case file.
Presiding judge Omar thereafter called on three names of prosecution witnesses who had been legally notified to attend the hearing. The three were absent.
“The court has decided to use the legal power and force the suspect to show up next hearing. Meanwhile, prosecutors will have to inform the three witnesses [who missed Monday’s hearing] to attend the upcoming hearing on July 11,” said presiding judge Omar.
In a phone interview, lawyer Al Raisi told Gulf News: “On Thursday, my office received the legal notification from the Public Prosecution that we have been appointed by the court to defend a certain suspect. Initially, we were not aware which case is it and who is the suspect. We only learnt that today and we just collected a photocopy of the case file. Such a case requires work and effort but I won’t be able to do so due to my commitments and travels. Hence I will apologise to the court in the next hearing and refrain from defending the suspect because I go on business trips a lot.”
According to prosecution records obtained by Gulf News, an Indian janitor found Obaida’s body thrown under a huge ghaf tree while working along Dubai Academic City road at 7.30am on May 22. The janitor immediately reported the matter to his Sudanese supervisor.
Meanwhile, the boy’s father testified to prosecutors that he got acquainted to Abdullah through the latter’s nephew, who had introduced the suspect as a potential car buyer in March.
The suspect paid Dh500 as down payment, according to the father’s statement, to buy a car and had agreed to complete the full amount within two weeks.
“Then he started visiting my shop repeatedly and randomly pretending that he wanted to check on his car [the one he was supposed to buy]. Then one day he asked me to repay him Dh200 [from the Dh500] because he needed money,” said the father.
There are nine prosecution witnesses in the case including Obaida’s father and uncle, five police officers in addition to the supervisor and the janitor.
A police major claimed to prosecutors that the defendant was apprehended at his brother’s house.
Abdullah was quoted as telling prosecutors: “I asked the boy to meet me behind the building where he lived. I picked him up at 7.30pm; he had asked me to buy him a hoverboard. I had been drinking vodka. He asked me to drive to the beach and I drove to Al Mamzar. I was too drunk and he stayed with me until 5am. He was jumping around and he sat on my lap. Then I had sex with him in the backseat … when I finished, he dressed up and asked me to buy him the hoverboard. I told him it was too late and all the shops are closed. Then he told me that he would tell his family about what I had done to him … then I killed him.”
The trial continues.
