Zaid Meerwali

Zaid Meerwali who held dual Canadian-Iraqi citizenship, was seized August 2, 2005 and $250,000 in ransom was demanded. Officials in Canada said, that on August 15 he had been shot in the head while the family was preparing the ransom money.

Zaid Meerwali was a 33-year-old businessman and a Seneca College student. He left his hometown of Richmond Hill, Ontario in mid-2004 to join a brother in selling computer systems and satellite dishes in Iraq.

He was abducted from his home by men who claimed to be police officers. A ransom was demanded over the phone but the kidnappers never gave the family enough time to prepare it. A nephew found Mr. Meerwali's body in a hospital morgue, shot in the head with his throat cut, scarred with cigarette butts all over the body and bruised a number of times.
Zaid Meerwali leaves behind his wife, mother and 10 siblings.

His brother, Ramzi Meerwali, told CTV News Toronto that a group of men barged into Zaid's compound, claiming to be part of the government.

"They took him right from the bed,"
Meerwali said from Richmond Hill, a wealthy suburb of Toronto.
The 10 gunmen, disguised as police officers, hit Zaid's wife with the butt of a rifle, stole his cash and jewellery and then took him away.
The abductors called the man's family twice to arrange a $250,000 ransom. Ramzi said the family arranged to get the money, but the kidnappers stopped phoning, so there was no communication between the two sides. After only a couple days, Zaid was killed by a gunshot to the head, according to reports.

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