Abu Dhabi // A man who poured petrol over his brother and set him alight because he suspected he had raped his son was found guilty of murder and jailed for one year yesterday.
As well as killing his brother, RS, an Emirati, also severely burnt two other brothers. Both men suffered lasting injuries but survived. Initially, prosecutors also accused RS's mother of tying up the brother and burning him to death.
Prosecutors also charged the two other brothers, ages 19 and 17, both of whom have the initials SS, with raping RS's son. RS was sentenced yesterday by Abu Dhabi Criminal Court of First Instance for murder. He has been in prison since September and, according to a court official, would be released today. He was additionally sentenced to one year for causing permanent injury to the two other brothers, but that sentence was suspended for three years. All the other family members were acquitted.
Chief Justice Saeed Abdul Baseer told the family that the court granted leniency to all the men because no one sought the death penalty and because the situation involved a family.
Forensic evidence showed RS's son was sexually assaulted by an adult several times. The killing took place on September 27 last year. According to prosecution records, RS came to his house to take his wife to the hospital and saw his two sons in bed in an "inappropriate position".
"He beat them and asked them who taught them to do that and they replied it was their uncles [RS's brothers]," according to prosecutors' records. On his way to his brother's house, he bought chains and petrol. He tied up the victim, MS, poured petrol on him and set him on fire. Prosecutors say he also tied up his other brothers but put out the fire before they were critically injured. RS's father said his son asked him to come to the house urgently. When he arrived, he said, he saw three of his sons tied up and RS beating them with a pipe.
"He asked his son why he tied his brothers but he did not answer. He then asked his wife, who was present in the hall, about the reason and she did not reply either," prosecutors said.
RS then started smoking a cigarette. He then heard one of the surviving sons asking his mother, who was carrying matches, not to light them. "She lit them up anyway and the sons were set on fire," prosecutors records read. The father denied that his son had set the fire.
The 19-year-old brother told prosecutors that after his brother tied them up, he asked them whether they had raped his son. "They said 'no'. He then smoked a cigarette and [the victim] got up and pushed [RS]; this caused the cigarette to drop and start a fire," prosecutors wrote. The 17-year-old reiterated to prosecutors what his other brother said. He denied he warned his mother against lighting the matches.
The mother testified to police and prosecutors she was carrying matches because she was going to the kitchen after she prayed in her room. "But she lit up a matchstick to clean her teeth. She dropped it because she was surprised when she saw her son [RS] smoking a cigarette," prosecutors quoted her as saying. She told prosecutors she did not mean to burn her sons. Another brother, who was not involved in the case, told prosecutors that after the brothers were set on fire, "everyone ran to put out the fire".
The incident was reported by the father, who told police that his son had burned all three of his other sons. hhassan@thenational.ae
