Late travel industry executive Marc Bennett's wife speaks out

Nancy Bennett told The Times her husband was "anxious and frightened" after recounting how he was allegedly detained and mistreated following his arrest at the offices of his employer Qatar Airways before being left in "legal limbo" confined to a hotel room in Doha.

Ten weeks after his arrest, Bennett, 52, was found hanged. Authorities in Qatar recorded his death as a suicide, but a British coroner ruled that there was "no specific evidence of suicidal intent", The Times reports.

Bennett was a prominent figure in travel having held high-ranking roles with both Thomas Cook and Tui. In 2017, he became vice-president of Discover Qatar, a subsidiary of state-owned Qatar Airways, and was tasked with modernising Qatar’s tourism industry working closely with Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar al-Baker.

He handed in his notice in September 2019 while he was reportedly considering a job with a Saudi travel business, one that would allow him to spend more time in the UK.

After returning to the UK, he was asked to return to Doha in October. It was then Qatar Airways, according to The Times, said evidence had come to light he had been sending confidential documents to a private email address. As the discovery was made while Bennett was in Qatar, he was arrested and detained.