A cargo inspector, who killed his ex-girlfriend by battering her head with a baseball bat and stabbing her with a knife, has been jailed for life.
The 29-year-old Kenyan inspector’s seven-year love affair ended violently when he murdered his countrywoman in March 2016.
The defendant followed his ex-girlfriend for weeks and repeatedly contacted her but when she persistently dodged him, he decided to kill her.
On Sunday, the Dubai Court of First Instance jailed the Kenyan accused for life over premeditated murder, arson and wrecking private property.
The accused had purchased a baseball bat and a knife from Deira before he went to his ex-girlfriend’s office, where he hid inside the emergency exit space in the building for some time. At 5.30pm, he stormed into her office and killed her with a baseball bat and the knife.
He also set the office on fire by using a cloth soaked in petrol.
Presiding judge Fahd Al Shamsi said the accused will be deported after serving the jail term and the baseball bat and knife will be confiscated.
Police and fire fighters were informed about the incident by one of the co-workers of the victim.
The 29-yar-old defendant pleaded guilty and admitted that he murdered the victim when he appeared in the court.
The accused had pre-planned to kill his girlfriend and for this, according to prosecutors, he bought a baseball bat and a knife and hid them in a bag. Then he headed to the victim’s office where he set the place on fire and killed the woman.
“Yes I killed her but I had not planned the murder in advance,” he told the court.
The deceased’s 27-year-old female co-worker said the victim broke up with the cargo inspector because he was alcoholic.
“I came to know from her best friend in Kenya that she dumped him and he could not deal with the fact that she had broken up with him. He called her daily but she never responded and always dodged him. The victim shared the same apartment with her boyfriend but she moved into my place after she broke up with him. On the day of the incident, the accused came to office and knocked at the door … when we opened the door we found the defendant standing outside. He looking very angry. He walked in and lit up a piece of cloth soaked with petrol and tossed it up. The cloth fell on the rug. Then he rushed towards the victim, who tried to lock herself inside the washroom but could not do so as it was already locked from inside by another colleague. When the victim yelled at the defendant, he pounded her with the bat and as she fell down he hit her again. I called the neighbours for help ... I bumped into another colleague in the elevator and we rushed down to call the security for assistance … but we didn’t find anyone. When police came, we went up to the office, the defendant had already left and my friend was left dead with a knife stabbed in her neck,” the co-worker said.
A policeman said the accused was spotted on surveillance cameras while entering and leaving the building.
“He was apprehended while hiding at his friend’s residence in Sharjah,” testified the policeman.
The defendant told prosecutors that he killed his ex-girlfriend because she had dumped him after a seven-year love affair.
The ruling remains subject to appeal within 15 days.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
