Lawyer: British editor should serve 2 years in Dubai killing

The lawyer of a British newspaper editor convicted of killing his wife with a hammer has asked a Dubai court to reduce his sentence to two years in prison.

The request made Wednesday on behalf of former Gulf News editor Francis Matthew could see him freed before the end of the year if granted.

Matthew’s lawyer Ali al-Shamsi told Dubai’s Court of Appeal that evidence proves the crime was not premeditated.

The court is expected to rule on Matthew’s request on Nov. 27.

Matthew initially was sentenced to 15 years in prison for bludgeoning his wife Jane to death at their home in 2017.

Matthew and Jane Matthew, his wife of 30 years, were prominent members of the United Arab Emirates’ large British expatriate community.