Mohammed Al-Araimi, 20, the son of property magnate Sheikh Abdullah Al-Araimi, was fatally stabbed in an alleyway after going for dinner with his university friend Nasser Kanoo
A man who murdered a wealthy Omani student near the London department store Harrods has been sentenced to a minimum of 27 years in prison.
Mohammed Al-Araimi (age 20) was the son and property magnate Sheikh Abdullah Al-Araimi. He was out with Nasser, a 22-year-old university friend, to have dinner.
Badir Al-Nazi (24) and Arseboon Dalbaro (23) attacked King’s College students in an apparent attempted robbery.
Mr. Al-Araimi was wearing a £37,000 Patek Philippe watch. At the same time, Mr. Kanoo had an £8,000 Rolex, as they were attacked following a dinner at Sale E Pepe after meeting outside the Bulgari Hotel close to Mr. Al-Araimi’s family home.
The pair of attackers waited in the alleyway and attacked them from behind.
Al-Nazi claimed that, minutes before the incident, he had asked the friends for a cigarette but that Mr. Al-Amairi had denied his request and insulted him.
However, the court was not able to find any evidence supporting this account.
Mr. Al-Araimi suffered a chest injury and was stabbed. He was found unconscious by the Harrods Christmas tree.
Kanoo sustained a knife wound to the hip. He was later released from the hospital.
Al-Nazi, a Kuwaiti citizen, admitted to manslaughter and carrying a knife but denied murder. German national Dilbaro attributed the stabbings to his co-defendant.
Both men were acquitted of attempted robbery, but a jury at Inner London Crown Court found Al-Nazi guilty of murder and wounding Mr. Kanoo with intent to do him grievous bodily harm.
Dilbaro was found not guilty of murder, manslaughter, or having a weapon, but he was found guilty of inflicting injury on Mr. Kanoo when he tried to stop the victim from fleeing, the court heard.
Al-Nazi was sentenced to a life sentence, with a minimum of 27 years for murder and an eight-year sentence of wounding with intent. Six months will be served concurrently for possession of a knife.
Dilbaro was sentenced to 33 months in prison.
Addressing Al-Nazi, Judge Usha Karu said: “There is no doubt that you knew full well what you were doing when you used a knife that evening to murder Mr. Al-Araimi and wound Mr. Kanoo.
“In the space of eight seconds, a life was lost.”
In a statement read to the court, Mr. Al-Araimi’s brother, Raid, described his sibling as someone who “spread joy and kindness to anyone who crossed his path” and condemned his killing as a “cowardly attack.”
He said: “Mohammed was murdered in such a monstrous manner which has inflicted such pain on us which cannot be described.”
The court also heard a statement from Mr. Kanoo, who said: “Never did I imagine that a casual dinner would evolve into the last time I would see my best friend Mohammed or the last time I could call him by his name.
“I can only hope the offenders realize that action, which lasted a mere eight seconds, has had a grave, detrimental impact on the lives of our loved ones.
“No matter what the motive was, there is no convincing enough reason to take an innocent life away and traumatize another.”