Man 'burns down neighbour's car for parking it in front of his home'

Emirati accused denies charges, saying he only threatened to burn the car but never followed through

A car was set ablaze after repeatedly being parked in the wrong spot. Photo not actual vehicle. Salam Al Amir / The National

A man destroyed his neighbour’s car by setting it on fire because he repeatedly parked in the wrong spot, an Abu Dhabi court heard on Sunday.

The Emirati accused said his neighbour frequently parked in front of his house and blocked a large portion of the street. He said that while he threatened to set his neighbour’s car on fire, he never acted on the threat.

“I repeatedly asked the neighbour not to park in front of my house, asking him to park in his designated space,” he told the court.

“A day before the incident, I returned home and found his car parked in front of my house again, so I called him up.”

He said the pair got into an intense argument that ended with the accused threatening to destroy his neighbour’s vehicle.

“While we were arguing, I warned that I would burn down his car.”

The accused told the court that he hung up the phone and left the house to run an errand.

“When I returned I was surprised to find the car was burnt.”

At Abu Dhabi’s criminal court, the accused denied charges of intentionally burning a car, saying he only made the threat out of rage but did not follow through. He instead suggested that someone may have burnt the vehicle in an attempt to frame him.

On Sunday, the accused asked the court to bail him out of jail until the verdict is issued.

The court said it would issue its verdict on Tuesday.