Dubai: When reports of a house fire brought the Civil Defence to a two-bedroom apartment in Al Muhaisnah on April 3, the corpse of an Asian man found in the corridor bore no indications of foul play.
The investigators' primary assumption was that the victim had died after smoke inhalation created by the accidental fire -- until the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) agents discovered a murder that led to the arrest of a 24-year-old woman.
“The corpse bore no signs of an assault, no bruises or marks that indicated criminal activity,” Dubai Police Chief Maj Gen Khamis Al Mazeina said.
“The scene suggested that he had simply died from smoke inhalation after a fire accidentally erupted in the living room. It would have been an open and shut case if our CID was not specifically trained at looking beyond obvious clues.”
Another senior official said careful police work led them to the real story.
Maj Gen Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri, Assistant Chief for Criminal Investigation Affairs, said: “The department investigates such incidents for a couple of days. It is in our protocol to turn over every stone until we find a comprehensive narrative behind a suspicious scene.”
The victim, an Asian man in his late 30s and an employee who worked for a Dubai-based firm, reportedly had company in his apartment the day of the murder.
This fact was the primary lead in the investigation, which Major Adel Al Joker, head of CID at Dubai Police, said helped them crack the crime.
“The victim was in the company of two of his friends and three other women, all from the same nationality,” he said.
“They were together from approximately 5pm to 10pm on the day of the crime. Based on the testimonies, only the suspect, a 24-year-old woman, stayed behind.”
Al Joker said the woman had pushed the victim, who had consumed alcohol and smoked cigarettes, into a room in the apartment and locked the door.
“She then began to rifle through his things and stole jewellery, electronics and other valuables,” he said. “The victim used to share the apartment with his mother, who had travelled back to her homeland, leaving her jewellery behind.”
Arson
The suspect then piled a number of the victim’s clothes on the couch and set them on fire.
“She stayed behind to ensure the fire spread and caused the victim’s death,” Al Joker said. “She then locked the front door and disposed of the key somewhere far from the scene.”
Al Joker said CID obtained a warrant from the Public Prosecution to search the suspect’s apartment in Hor Al Anz.
“She was living with a male roommate,” he said. “WE found all the stolen valuables in the apartment, after which she confessed to committing the crime and divulged its details.”
According to Al Joker, all the victim’s friends and the suspect have been referred to the public prosecution for further investigations.
“This case just goes to show that no matter how misleading the details of a case could be, we will always find out the truth,” he concluded.
