Jeddah police on Wednesday arrested a 60-year-old man for murdering a friend in Al-Baghdadiya District. The suspect, who was earlier on the death row before getting pardoned by the victim's family in lieu of blood money, confessed that he hit his friend's head against the wall before punching him repeatedly in the chest and head in a fight that followed a verbal dispute between the two inside the suspect's house. He said his punches to the victim's chest broke a rib. The police initially suspected the man when they found that he was a close friend of the murdered man whose body was found covered with blood in an alley in the district. The police cordoned off the scene, lifted fingerprints, and documented the crime, as investigators combed the area and interviewed witnesses. Bruises on the victim's head and chest and fractures of the ribs were detected. The police discovered the deceased's identity, and found that he had a close relationship with a man living a few meters away from his house who suffered from psychological and social disorders. Traces of the victim's blood were detected at the man's house. The suspect initially denied the crime, and claimed his dead friend slipped and fell inside the toilet and was fatally injured before he went out of the house and fell down dead in the street. The man continued to deny his relationship with the murdered man before finally confessing at Al-Kandarah Police Station. He said he suffered painful, “tragic” moments after he committed his second murder.
