JEDDAH — Saudis were outraged over the murder of an Indian national who worked in a restaurant in Al-Aflaj, 300 kilometers south of Riyadh. The motive behind the killing is hitherto unclear. Some witnesses say a customer shot dead the worker after he delayed in bringing a sandwich ordered by the former. Others claim that the two fought over the payment of bill, and the customer left to return with a gun with which he shot dead the worker from behind as he talked on the phone. The incident was videotaped and went viral on social media. The killer, in his 30s, escaped from the scene while the victim was rushed to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. Later, police arrested the killer. Twitter hashtags expressed extreme anger and sadness over the incident and sought the death penalty for the killer. "When is this madness going to end?" asked a Saudi on Twitter. Another person urged the family of the victim that if they want blood money they should accept nothing less than SR10 million. He suggested that building a mosque in the victim's name is another compensation. A Twitter user said that holding a gun without any authorization is a crime. He said that holding a light weapon will lead to two-year imprisonment, a person holding a gun will be jailed for 10 years and if someone used a gun to threaten people he will be sentenced to 20 years in prison. This, he said, will discipline people from carrying weapons in public. Khaled Fahd, a Saudi citizen, in an online comment, said, "The killer should be executed quickly, and it should take place in front of the restaurant so everyone would see it. Nothing should prompt the killing of another person. Even if the worker made a mistake, then there are many channels to lodge a complaint." Indian media identified the victim as 45-year-old Nazeer, a native of Alamkode near Attingal in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram district. Nazeer is reportedly survived by wife Seena and three children.
