Machete murderer jailed for 15 years

DUBAI // A Bangladeshi man who slashed a Chinese woman to death with a machete has been sentenced to 15 years in prison. MR, a 24-year-old driver, attacked Li Bing Ma, whom he said was a prostitute, after they fought over money. The Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance found him guilty of premeditated murder. Witnesses testified during his trial that residents of the Al Owais building in Deira had complained on August 20 of last year that a foul smell was coming from the woman's flat.

The building's security guard said he went to the flat to investigate. "I found the door open, so I rang the bell," said Mahdi Ali. "I opened the door and saw a lot of blood on the floor and feet covered with blood." Police officers later confirmed they found Ms Li in a pool of her own blood. She had suffered multiple deep cuts and was bruised all over her body. Capt Mustafa Hussain testified that witnesses had been seen the woman in the company of two men - the Bangladeshi and another man identified as SI.

Officers detained and interrogated SI, who was in possession of Ms Li's mobile phone. SI claimed the phone had been given to him by the driver and that he did not know where it came from. MR was later arrested and confessed while in custody, according to police. He said he met the victim on August 16 while he was walking around the Naif district. He claimed she offered him sex for Dh25 (US$6.50), but that they got into an argument over money when they got to her flat. He said he picked up a machete in the flat after she pushed him, according to court records.

He was also convicted of theft for stealing the woman's phone, and will be deported after serving his sentence. @Email:[e-mail]