15-year sentence for assault, theft of Dh120,000

Restaurant worker mugged colleague to steal takings for money to return to his home country, prosecutors say.

DUBAI // A cook who hit a colleague on the head with a hammer and stole more than Dh120,000 from him was sentenced this morning to 15 years in prison to be followed by deportation.

NG, 33, a Filipino, told police he needed the cash so he could leave the Emirates to visit his homeland. He had tried, unsuccessfully, to borrow the money from his friends. He was found guilty of premeditated attempted murder of MS, a Pakistani, and of theft.

Police received a report on February 13, 2010, about a man bleeding heavily. They later discovered the victim had been mugged while carrying money from a Chili’s restaurant branch where he and NG both worked.

NG was planning to leave the country but was stopped at Abu Dhabi International Airport, where he had money hidden in his shoes along with a ring, a bracelet and a gold necklace.

NG said he knew MS was going to be taking the restaurant's earnings to the company's head office at 9am, so he hid a hammer close to the vehicle MS would be using.

Records showed that he asked MS to give him a ride to his home in the Al Quoz area.

When NG got into the vehicle, hit MS on the head with the hammer and took a bag that he thought contained cash, prosecutors said.

However, he discovered the bag contained cheques and papers, so he returned, hit MS several more times and stole the cash.

NG bought an airline ticket and went to the restaurant's head office to ask for his passport. He also converted the currency he stole to US dollars and transferred some to the Philippines.

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