Dubai father who missed children attempts suicide

Dubai: A man who missed his children dearly and couldn’t take leave to see his newborn, has attempted suicide by stabbing himself in the stomach twice, then jumping from the first floor.

The 33-year-old Filipino house-helper, V.M., was said to be missing his children and his newborn baby, whom he had not seen, as he could not take leave and visit them in the Philippines.

Driven by sadness and despair, V.M. walked into his kitchen and stabbed himself with a knife, according to prosecution records, twice in his stomach. Then he lay down on the floor thinking for nearly 90 minutes before he jumped from the window of the first-floor kitchen.

Prosecutors accused the Filipino of attempting suicide by stabbing himself with a knife and jumping out of the window on November 17, 2012.

The Dubai Misdemeanour Court sentenced V.M. in absentia to one month in jail.

“The accused will be deported following the completion of his imprisonment,” said presiding judge Ashraf Mohammad in courtroom 17.

When questioned by police interrogators, the defendant confessed that he stabbed himself in the stomach and then jumped from the window.

“I was going through very rough times and had grave personal problems which I feared that I couldn’t face in case they escalated. I stabbed myself and jumped from the window because I was not thinking properly. My sister was present in the residence but she did not notice me because she was sleeping,” claimed the servant.

The Filipino was not drunk or under any narcotic or drug when he decided to commit suicide, according to his police statement.

Meanwhile the sister, H.M., told the police that she woke up suddenly when her neighbour knocked on the door and told her that he had seen her brother wounded in the parking lot.

“The neighbour knocked on our door at around 8am. He claimed that he saw my brother lying injured on the floor and bleeding profusely. I rushed down and called the ambulance as soon as I saw that my brother had knife wounds in his stomach. My brother had been suffering prior to the incident. His wife gave birth and he couldn’t see his newborn because of his work conditions,” said H.M.

Prosecution records said swift medical intervention helped save the defendant as soon as he was admitted to hospital.