The controversial World Cup in Qatar opened on Sunday with a pompous and idiosyncratic ceremony and a sobering opening defeat by the hosts. The Qatar national team had no chance against Ecuador in their opening game, losing 2-0.
Before the game, Dominique Metzger (45) reported from Qatar for the Argentinian TV channel Todo Noticias (TN) and stood in the middle of the crowd of football fans. Then a brutal thief struck, grabbed into the reporter’s handbag and stole her wallet, among other things, as she explains in another report for the TV channel.
She then went to the police and reported the theft. “The officer said to me: ‘We have high-tech cameras everywhere and we are going to track down the thief with facial recognition. What should the judiciary do if we find him? ››, says Metzger in the TV report. In fact, during the World Cup in Qatar is said to have installed some 15,000 facial recognition cameras.
Five years in prison or deportation
But the police officer’s question irritated her. Why would she decide how to punish the thief? She thought of a misunderstanding and asked. And indeed: Metzger must say what punishment is appropriate for the thief of her purse. The police officer got specific and then asked the Argentinian: “Do you want him to be sentenced to five years in prison? Do you want him expelled?”
Metzger says she did not respond to this, but only emphasized that she wanted her stolen things back. It is unclear whether the thief has been caught yet.
It is the second incident involving TV journalists in Qatar. Last week, a Danish reporter went live when security forces stopped him. They demanded that he stop filming even though he was in a public place and even had his accreditation to show. Footage of the incident circulated online and the tournament organizers apologized. (jmh)