2 Pinoy lifeguards plead innocence before UAE court over death in pool

Two Filipino lifeguards pleaded not guilty before a United Arab Emirates court this week over charges of negligence for the death of an Indian national in a swimming pool in August 2012.

Prosecutors accused the two Filipinos, aged 43 and 31, of failing to perform their duties which led to the man’s death, UAE news site Gulf News reported.

At the Dubai Misdemeanour Court on Thursday, the two Filipinos denied the accusation they were responsible for the 29-year-old Indian’s drowning.

The Indian victim had drowned while spending a day of swimming and entertainment with his brother and his family at Al Memzar Beach Park in August 2012.

He reportedly jumped into the four-meter-deep adults’ pool, but drowned and landed in the middle of the swimming pool’s bottom.

But the two Filipinos maintained the pool was crammed on that day, and asked the judge to adjourn the court until they hire a lawyer to defend them.

During the prosecution questioning, the victim’s elder brother said his children, his brother and he went to spend a day at the pool around 3 p.m.

A few hours later, he noticed a group of people surrounding the pool. When he went to check what happened, he realized his brother had drowned.

He said his brother did not know how to swim, adding he spotted first-aid equipment available near the poolside.

However, the lifeguards claimed they were not responsible for the man’s drowning.

“The park accommodates around 150-200 swimmers. I was seated at the rescue tower watching out the swimmers meanwhile (the other Filipino) was checking around the park’s three pools. Suddenly a man came up to me and said he spotted the victim at the bottom of the pool drowned and motionless," said one of the Filipinos.

He said he rushed to bring the victim out of the pool and save him, and dived to the bottom and pulled his body outside the pool.

"(W)e tried to resuscitate him and then he was rushed to hospital. Later we were told that he died,” one of the Filipinos said. — LBG, GMA News

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