A burglar convicted of murdering a couple during a break-in at their Dubai mansion has lost his appeal against the death sentence.

Hiren and Vidhi Adhiya, both in their 40s, were killed as they slept in their home in an exclusive gated community in the United Arab Emirates, on 17th June 2020.

Their killer – a 28-year-old unnamed Pakistani construction worker – had claimed he had had no criminal intent.

But the Dubai Court of Appeal rejected his appeal after they heard he had stabbed the couple a total of 24 times during the break-in.

Judges ruled: “The criminal intent factor has been proven by evidence and by his confession”.

The death sentence will now be ratified by the Court of Cessation, which is the emirate’s highest court.

During the original trial, the court heard that the defendant had waited for six hours outside the home, in Mirador, Arabian Ranches, before sneaking in through an unlocked patio door.

He reportedly took a wallet containing AED 2,000 (GBP 450) before heading into the bedroom in search of valuables.

The court heard that when Hiren woke up, the Pakistani man stabbed him to death and then attacked his wife.

Hiren was reportedly stabbed 10 times in the head and chest and abdomen and shoulder, while his wife Vidhi was stabbed 14 times in the head and neck, as well as in the face and in her arm.

The Indian couple’s oldest daughter – not been named but who sustained minor injuries – reportedly managed to call Dubai Police, who arrested the man less than a day later in Sharjah.

The defendant said that he had carried out the robbery to send his sick mother in Pakistan some money and admitted to the “premeditated and planned” murder of the Indian businessman and his wife, as well as to the attempted murder of their daughter.