Briton killed in Saudi accused of gay sexual assault
An Egyptian man has confessed to stabbing to death 46-year-old Briton Stephen John Havering in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi police are awaiting a medical report to assess the claims of 28-year-old suspect that he was acting in self-defence after his victim tried to sexually assault him, police sources told Gulf Daily News.
Mr Havering suffered four stab wounds to his neck, one in the back and one to his waist during a knife attack last Tuesday.
His body was found on Wednesday morning in an apartment on Prince Naif Al Suad Street.
“The Egyptian suspect, Muhammad Mukhlis Shamsuddin, has claimed that Mr Havering was trying to sexually harass him,” police sources told Gulf Daily News.
“He says he stabbed Mr. Havering in an attempt to defend himself.
“We are doing medical reports to see if the claims are true.”
Mr Havering was known to occasionally visit Saudi Arabia as an investment consultant for the Shoaibi Group, an oil company with several branches including one in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.
A colleague from Shoaibi Group told the Gulf Daily News that Mr Havering had been living in Bahrain, but commuted to Saudi Arabia for the past six months.
Mr Havering was married to a German woman and the couple have a son and a daughter.
It is thought his family were planning to join him in Bahrain from their home in the Netherlands.
“I didn’t know him very long, maybe others knew him better. But he was a typical Englishman with a good sense of humour, very gentle and a good father. I think everyone working with him had respect for his professionalism and politeness.” said a colleague, who asked to remain anonymous.
The Foreign Office has declined to discuss any details of the case, but did confirm that Mr Havering was killed.
Homosexual acts are illegal in Saudi Arabia. The so-called ‘morality police’ have been conducting a recent crackdown on parties they allege are held by gay men. Last week 55 people were detained at a farm in the east of the country.
Drugs and alcohol were reportedly found at the gathering.
TV channel al-Arabiya reported that two young men wearing women’s make up and dancing together were among the people arrested by religious police.
