DUBAI // The father of murder victim Obaida Al Aqrabawi was ejected from a courtroom on Monday after he started shouting at the man accused of sexually assaulting and killing his young son.
Jordanian Ibrahim Al Aqrabawi was escorted out after loudly shouting “may God curse you” at the 48-year-old defendant.
Mr Al Aqrabawi and relatives of the victim were heard talking throughout the hearing before he was taken out towards the end of proceedings.
Omran Darweesh, the Jordanian defendant’s lawyer, submitted a request to the court seeking to have closed hearings.
Eight-year-old Obaida went missing from his Sharjah home two days before his body was found dumped by a motorway in Dubai on May 22.
He had been strangled and sexually assaulted.
Forensic expert Dr Islam, who examined Obaida’s body, told the court he had found injuries on the defendant’s upper right chest, arm and elbow, all caused by the boy’s resisting.
Signs of force due to sexual assault were also visible on Obaida at the time of examination, he said.
Dr Islam said that the strangulation did not cause fractures in Obaida’s neck because bones in children under 10 were still flexible.
The defendant also asked that the court contact human-rights groups over his treatment in prison.
“Can I ask you personally a question, so I can give you and myself some relief?” the defendant said to judge Erfan Omar Attiyah.
“No personal questions to the court,” the bench replied.
An official source said that the defendant was being kept in solitary confinement to prevent suicide attempts, particularly because he had tried to kill himself twice before, according to his criminal record.
The court also listened to the testimony of a police lieutenant who was part of the investigation.
The officer said that he had accompanied the defendant to the scene when they were recreating the events of the crime.
Throughout most of the hearing, the defendant stood silent in a packed courtroom. He was surrounded by eight police officers in the dock, while seven other officers were spread throughout the courtroom.
The next hearing is scheduled for Monday.
salamir@thenational.ae
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Ibrahim's play list
Completed an electrical diploma at the Adnoc Technical Institute
Works as a public relations officer with Adnoc
Apart from the piano, he plays the accordion, oud and guitar
His favourite composer is Johann Sebastian Bach
Also enjoys listening to Mozart
Likes all genres of music including Arabic music and jazz
Enjoys rock groups Scorpions and Metallica
Other musicians he likes are Syrian-American pianist Malek Jandali and Lebanese oud player Rabih Abou Khalil
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Past winners of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
2016 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
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2014 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2013 Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
2012 Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus)
2011 Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
2010 Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
2009 Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
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Inspiration: My late father moulded me into the man I am today. I would also say disappointment and sadness are great motivators. There are times when events have brought me to my knees but it has also made me determined not to let them get the better of me.
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