DUBAI // The man who murdered Kerry Winter should serve a life sentence in prison, the Dubai Court of Appeals ruled yesterday.
The sentence is 10 years longer than the 15 year jail term handed down by the Criminal Court of First Instance when the killer, a British operations manager known as MA, was originally convicted.
MA, 42, stalked Winter, 36, a South African events executive, and bludgeoned her to death with a baseball bat in front of her al Barsha villa, before dumping her body at sea on August 20, 2008.
Her body was never found and the murder weapon never recovered.
MA's lawyers are expected to file a final appeal at the Dubai Court of Cassation.
MA has insisted that he is not the killer, that he was presumed guilty from the moment of the arrest, and that there is no evidence to support the prosecution's case.
He was not present in court yesterday as Chief Justice Eissa al Sharif issued his ruling.
During the trial's closing arguments last month, MA protested his innocence and said his family - girlfriend, former wife and teenaged son - had suffered considerably during the investigation and trial.
MA had bumped into Winter at Madinat Jumeirah on the day of the murder and followed her back to Al Barsha. Two of her neighbours witnessed MA beating her with a baseball bat and then dragging her into her Ford Explorer SUV before driving away. Dubai Police found traces of her blood in the SUV.
MA placed Winter in her car and drove to his boat where he placed her body in a burlap sack and tossed it overboard.
MA was arrested at Dubai International Airport after flying back to the emirate five days after Winter went missing, and was charged with premeditated murder.
Winter's disappearance sparked a door-to-door sweep of parts of Dubai, a Facebook campaign with 7,000 members and a media campaign that included local and international press. The case involved British, South African and UAE authorities.
The murder trial caught the attention of people across three continents, including Jacob Zuma, the president of South Africa.
The lack of a corpse in the case has increased the strain on Winter's family. In an interview last year, her mother, Carol Winter, said she would not be satisfied without proof of her daughter's death. "I will just be praying that she is still alive. I believe she is. I will not grieve until I bury her. That's when I will know she is dead," she said.
Timeline
2003 Kerry Winter becomes involved with M A.
2008, June 27 Winter arrested at Dubai International Airport on charges of theft. M A files a complaint against her after breaking up.
June 28 Winter is released.
August 7 Public Prosecution dismisses the charges against Winter.
August 20 At about 8.30pm, Winter's neighbours at Al Barsha see her being beaten by a man with a baseball bat. He drags her, bleeding, into her car and drives away. M A, with a bat, chases a neighbour who callspolice at 8.36pm.
August 24 Winter's Ford Explorer is found near the Police Academy at Al Sufouh.
August 25 The last contact Winter's family has with her is via SMS, which says she was fine but that a guy in her villa was causing a problem with the landlord. When the family asks Winter to call so they can speak to her, the reply says that "the police are checking my phone, I am unable to call". The family replies in Afrikaans but gets no response.
August 25 M A is arrested at Dubai airport after returning from the UK, and is taken to Bur Dubai police station.
September 5 Volunteers gather at the Mall of the Emirates, but call off a planned search on advice from police. A Facebook group, "Help Us Find Kerry", is launched and gets more than 5,300 members.
September 7 More people join the search. Flyers in Arabic, Hindi and English with her picture are given out. More "Help Us Find Kerry" T-shirts are distributed.
September 16 On Day 27 of the search, a police official says he believes Winter is dead.
October 7 M A is convicted of life endangerment – sentenced to three months.
2009, April 9 M A is charged in court with murder.
2010, June 7 M A is convicted and sentenced to 15 years by the Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance.
December 19 M A's appeal is turned down, and his sentence is increased to life by the Dubai Court of Appeals.
amustafa@thenational.ae
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Install an air filter in your home.
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RESULTS
Main card
Bantamweight 56.4kg: Mehdi Eljamari (MAR) beat Abrorbek Madiminbekov (UZB), Split points decision
Super heavyweight 94 kg: Adnan Mohammad (IRN) beat Mohammed Ajaraam (MAR), Split points decision
Lightweight 60kg: Zakaria Eljamari (UAE) beat Faridoon Alik Zai (AFG), RSC round 3
Light heavyweight 81.4kg: Taha Marrouni (MAR) beat Mahmood Amin (EGY), Unanimous points decision
Light welterweight 64.5kg: Siyovush Gulmamadov (TJK) beat Nouredine Samir (UAE), Unanimous points decision
Light heavyweight 81.4kg: Ilyass Habibali (UAE) beat Haroun Baka (ALG), KO second round
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Series info
Test series schedule 1st Test, Abu Dhabi: Sri Lanka won by 21 runs; 2nd Test, Dubai: Play starts at 2pm, Friday-Tuesday
ODI series schedule 1st ODI, Dubai: October 13; 2nd ODI, Abu Dhabi: October 16; 3rd ODI, Abu Dhabi: October 18; 4th ODI, Sharjah: October 20; 5th ODI, Sharjah: October 23
T20 series schedule 1st T20, Abu Dhabi: October 26; 2nd T20, Abu Dhabi: October 27; 3rd T20, Lahore: October 29
Tickets Available at www.q-tickets.com
Stat Fourteen Fourteen of the past 15 Test matches in the UAE have been decided on the final day. Both of the previous two Tests at Dubai International Stadium have been settled in the last session. Pakistan won with less than an hour to go against West Indies last year. Against England in 2015, there were just three balls left.
Key battle - Azhar Ali v Rangana Herath Herath may not quite be as flash as Muttiah Muralitharan, his former spin-twin who ended his career by taking his 800th wicket with his final delivery in Tests. He still has a decent sense of an ending, though. He won the Abu Dhabi match for his side with 11 wickets, the last of which was his 400th in Tests. It was not the first time he has owned Pakistan, either. A quarter of all his Test victims have been Pakistani. If Pakistan are going to avoid a first ever series defeat in the UAE, Azhar, their senior batsman, needs to stand up and show the way to blunt Herath.
The biog
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BRIEF SCORES:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
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