Dubai: A cleaner lost his appeal and will spend one year in jail for battering a man’s head with a stick after snatching it from him following as heated argument.
The 29-year-old Nigerian cleaner quickly grabbed the stick from the man’s hand and hit his head before he was attacked in May 2016.
The man, whose nationality remained undisclosed, was rushed to the nearest hospital where doctors performed urgent and life-saving surgery on him as he had suffered a haemorrhage.
Surgeons were said to have lifted the victim’s skull to be able to reduce the haemorrhage that had resulted in the man losing consciousness.
Police apprehended the Nigerian, who was identified from the surveillance cameras installed at the building where the incident happened at 7.15pm.
In March, the Dubai Court of First Instance jailed the Nigerian for assaulting the victim and causing him a permanent disability.
The defendant appealed his primary judgement and pleaded not guilty before the Dubai Appeal Court.
Presiding judge Eisa Al Sharif dismissed the defendant’s appeal and upheld his one year jail term.
The accused will be deported after serving his punishment.
A police corporal said that a person reported to them that someone had assaulted the victim, who was rushed to a hospital as he was bleeding profusely from the head.
“The caller informed the police that the beaten man had an argument and quarrelled with the defendant, who battered his head with a stick. The caller said the man collapsed on the floor and lost consciousness. The surveillance cameras at the building where the assault happened clearly showed the Nigerian assaulting the man.
“The latter was arrested. During questioning, he admitted that he had a heated argument with the victim … the argument snowballed into a fight. The accused said the man victim grabbed a stick and was about to attack him when he [Nigerian] took it away from him and beat him. The cleaner admitted the victim fell down after he hit his head … he then threw away the stick and left the place,” the corporal said.
Medical reports confirmed that the victim’s head injury still requires medical follow up.
The appellate ruling remains subject to appeal before the Cassation Court within 27 days.
