A man has been sentenced to death for the murder of an Indian couple in Dubai.
The Pakistani construction worker, 26, stabbed Hiren and Vidhi Adhiya as they slept at their home in Mirador, Arabian Ranches, on June 17, 2020. Prosecutors said he had planned to burgle the house.
He was convicted of their murder at Dubai Criminal Court on Wednesday.
Judges were told he hid outside the couple’s home for six hours before sneaking in through an unlocked patio door when the lights inside were switched off.
I met him at the room’s door and he stabbed me at sight
Surviving daughter
He had planned to steal money and jewellery he had seen when carrying out maintenance work at the house the previous December.
After taking cash from a wallet on the ground floor of the property, he went upstairs to search for more valuables.
When Hiren Adhiya, 48 awoke to the sound of his bedside drawer opening, the defendant stabbed him to death before attacking Vidhi, 40.
Forensic reports revealed Hiren was stabbed 10 times in the head, chest, abdomen and left shoulder.
His wife was stabbed 14 times in her head, neck, chest, face, ear and right arm.
Both victims were attacked in bed, with several stabs found to have penetrated their blanket.
As the assailant left the bedroom, he encountered the couple’s elder daughter, who was 18 at the time, and stabbed her in the neck.
The girl and her sister, then 13, witnessed the horrifying crime scene before the wounded daughter called police and one of her father’s friends.
Investigators found a bloody handprint on the family’s wall and a mask on the victims’ bed with blood samples matching the accused’s DNA.
The knife used in the murder was found dumped about 500 metres away from the villa.
The defendant was arrested in Sharjah a few days later.
During police and prosecution questioning, he admitted charges of premeditated murder of the couple, the attempted murder of their daughter and theft.
He said three days before the murder, his mother in Pakistan had fallen sick and he was thinking of ways to provide her with money.
When he appeared in court in November 2020, he changed his plea and denied all charges.
Both daughters and their deceased father’s friend testified before court in February last year.
The older daughter told judges that at about 1.30am that day, she heard cries for help coming from her parents’ bedroom and used her mobile phone torch to see what was happening upstairs.
“I met him at the room’s door and he stabbed me at sight, but I kicked him before he fled,” she told judges.
The deceased’s father’s friend said the older daughter called him at about 2am and was screaming hysterically.
“She was screaming that her mother was dead and her father was still moving and that she was stabbed too,” he said in court.
“I thought she had a nightmare at first but when my wife and I arrived at the villa we saw police and an ambulance.”
Prosecutors sought the death penalty against the defendant.
They said the crime was premeditated and planned.
The verdict can be appealed within 15 days.
The biog
Name: Abeer Al Shahi
Emirate: Sharjah – Khor Fakkan
Education: Master’s degree in special education, preparing for a PhD in philosophy.
Favourite activities: Bungee jumping
Favourite quote: “My people and I will not settle for anything less than first place” – Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.
'Cheb%20Khaled'
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What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
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Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
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