THE FAMILY of a man who was found hanged in an unexplained death in Qatar have slammed the government as a “barbaric regime”.

Businessman Marc Bennett, from Haywards Heath, was found dead in his hotel room in Doha at Christmas 2019, two months after he resigned from a senior role with Qatar Airways where he was working to modernise the country’s tourism infrastructure.

After considering working for a business in Saudi Arabia - a rival of Qatar, he was arrested.

According to The Times, the father-of-three told friends he was tortured at a secret detention centre for three weeks.

He was released but was later found dead in the hotel room.

While Qatar claimed his death was a suicide, a British coroner ruled there was “no specific evidence of suicidal intent”.

In a statement to The Times, Marc’s family said “the footballing world should take a long, hard look at where it places its trust”.

They said: “Qatar is throwing millions at creating a veneer of respectability, which in reality hides a wholly unchanged, barbaric regime.

“We hope players and fans alike will pause to think about what happened to Marc Bennett.

“If this can happen to a strong, intelligent and kind man with a world of experience behind him, then all of us should be very worried indeed.”

The family also praised Marc’s work to prepare for the World Cup and said: “He was ecstatic at having the opportunity to play a part in delivering the World Cup in Qatar and firmly believed that Qatar was making headway in its efforts to modernise and become more inclusive.

“Tragically, he was wrong and the very country that he had such affection for betrayed him in the most brutal fashion, ending his life.”

A spokesman for the Qatari government told The Argus that it strongly denied claims of torture.

The official said: “The state of Qatar categorically denies allegations of mistreatment in its detention facilities.

“All detainees are treated with respect and dignity in accordance with international standards.

“Qatar regularly opens its detention facilities for inspection from independent human rights observers and international organisations.

“In 2019, Qatar invited a UN working group to inspect its facilities, while in the same year, the National Human Rights Committee conducted 96 independent field visits to facilities across the country.”

More than 1.2 million visitors are expected to travel to Qatar for the World Cup, which kicks off in late November.