Manama: Four Keralites in Qatar have been sentenced to death after being convicted of murdering a Yemeni gold merchant, local media has reported.
The first four defendants awarded the death penalty by a Qatari Criminal court in Doha on Wednesday.
The deceased was a Yemeni national who was running jewellery shops in Doha. According to the Police report, the defendants, all foreign workers, stabbed him to death in a flat during a robbery in June 2019. The investigation also found that after the crime, the stolen money was sent home by the accused through various means. Around two dozen expats were arrested later in connection with the brutal murder.
The purpose of the crime was to rob the money and gold from the Yemeni trader, the court ruled. However, the court has acquitted some defendants of murder charges.
There were more than 20 people accused in the case. The police investigation revealed that some of the accused had escaped from Qatar. The rest have been in jail for a year.
Many of those arrested by police on murder charges were later found not guilty and released.
The defendants are reportedly expected to appeal the ruling.
More details of the verdicts will be released Thursday, sources said.
