Life sentence upheld for one of trio who murdered security guards in diesel robbery

A man involved in the murder of two security guards during a diesel robbery lost his appeal against a life sentence in jail on Tuesday.

The 30-year-old Pakistani was one of four men who raided a Dubai concrete molding company on the morning of March 12, 2010. After gaining access to the premises, the four - one Arab and three Pakistanis aged between 30 and 37 - repeatedly stabbed both security guards to death and drove off with 6,602 litres 1,744 gallons of diesel worth Dh33,500.

The victims, a Bangladeshi and an Indian, were stabbed in the back, chest and forehead.

A security guard who just began his evening shift contacted the police at about 6pm after finding the Bangladeshi’s body in a small corridor behind the company’s restaurant.

Police said that the Indian’s body was dumped in a rubbish dumpster 300 metres away.

The three Pakistani defendants were arrested at their apartment in Al Warsan but it was not revealed when that happened. Police found money in their possession that they had received for selling the stolen diesel.

“They admitted and said they had planned it with the Arab man,” said a policeman.

The men told police how they arrived in two tankers and filled them with the diesel. They later paid the Arab defendant Dh4,625 as a reward but he denied knowing that the guards had been killed.

The Arab was arrested in Egypt after fleeing the country following the murders.

All four were referred to Dubai Criminal Court, where they denied premeditated murder and theft charges in April 2015.

On March 26 this year, all four were sentenced to life in jail, to be followed by deportation. Only one appealed and lost his bid on Tuesday so they will all have to see out their life sentences, which is a standard 25 years in the UAE.