‘What sentence do you want us to give him? Do you want him to be sentenced to five years in prison?’
An Argentinian TV reporter was left baffled by the response of Qatari police after getting robbed during a live broadcast in the opening days of the 2022 World Cup.
The tournament kicked off Sunday with the hosts losing 2-0 to Ecuador. England open their campaign on Monday against Iran, and Wales play USA this evening.
In the build-up to the opening match, Argentine journalist Dominique Metzger was doing a live broadcast from the Corniche area of Doha when items from her handbag were stolen.
She reported the theft to police, but was taken aback by their reply. They reportedly asked Metzger what punishment she would like to be imposed.
Metzger said the “cultural differences” were apparent as soon as she went to the station.
“The policewoman said to me: ‘We have high-tech cameras everywhere and we are going to locate him [the thief] with face detection. What do you want the justice system to do when we find him?'”
Metzger was confused by the statement and asked for further clarification.
https://twitter.com/Langoula1Claire/status/1594637581538693122
“What justice do you want? What sentence do you want us to give him? Do you want him to be sentenced to five years in prison? Do you want him to be deported,” the reporter explained.
Metzger said she did not request a specific punishment, only the return of her stolen items. It is unclear if she has been united with them.
It has been reported that approximately 15,000 cameras with facial recognition have been installed at stadiums.
The incident with Metzger is reportedly second reporters at the tournament have suffered in recent days.
Danish network TV2 were approached by a group last week whilst they were producing a piece.
We now got an apology from Qatar International Media Office and from Qatar Supreme Commitee.
This is what happened when we were broadcasting live for @tv2nyhederne from a roundabout today in Doha. But will it happen to other media as well? #FIFAWorldCupQatar2022 pic.twitter.com/NSJj50kLql— Rasmus Tantholdt TV2 (@RasmusTantholdt) November 15, 2022
The footage of the incident went viral with tournament organisers later apologising.
An official statement read: “Tournament organisers are aware of an incident where a Danish broadcast crew were mistakenly interrupted during a live broadcast in one of Qatar’s tourist destinations.
“Upon inspection of the crew’s valid tournament accreditation and filming permit, an apology was made to the broadcaster by on-site security before the crew resumed their activity.
“Tournament organisers have since spoken to the journalist and issued an advisory to all entities to respect the filming permits in place for the tournament.”
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