“Do you want him to be sentenced to five years in prison? Do you want him to be deported?” – FIFA World Cup reporter left stunned by response from Qatar cops after being robbed

An Argentine TV reporter was robbed prior to the 2022 FIFA World Cup opener between host country Qatar and Ecuador, as per The Mirror. The journalist was dumbfounded after hearing how the Qatari police responded to her statement on the incident.

This year's FIFA World Cup kicked off on November 20 with a clash between Qatar and Ecuador. The hosts were handed a disappointing defeat as Enner Valencia grabbed a brace for the Ecuadorians, securing a 2-0 victory along with all three points on offer.

Prior to the FIFA World Cup opener, Argentine journalist Dominique Metzger was conducting a live broadcast from the Corniche area of Doha, the capital of Qatar. During the broadcast, items from her handbag were stolen and she subsequently went to a police station to report the incident.

Metzger has now revealed what the policewoman attending to her matter said to her that left her perplexed. The reporter said (via the aforementioned Mirror report):

"I went to the station and that was when the cultural differences began. 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? 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?'"

As per the report, approximately 15,000 cameras with facial recognition have in fact been installed at stadiums. However, Metzger reportedly told the local authorities that she merely wanted her stolen items returned and did not want any punishment to be imposed.

Danish journalist threatened by Qatari officials at FIFA World Cup

Metzger's incident was not the first instance of a reporter having a run-in with Qatar's local authorities. Danish journalist Rasmus Tantholdt was confronted by Qatari officials during a live broadcast, as per The Mirror.

Officials refused to accept Tantholdt's accreditation, which permitted him to film anywhere in the country and insisted that he needed permission.

One of these officials even went so far as to threaten to break the Danish reporter's camera. The entire altercation was caught on camera as the reporter was on a live broadcast and the clip has now gone viral.

Qatar does have strict laws on free speech with no independent media companies based there. The nation's senior authorities have provided exceptions to ensure reporting is allowed for the FIFA World Cup.

However, their stance on the matter clearly hasn't reached lower-level officials. As per the Mirror, Tantholdt did receive an apology after the incident.