Convicted man loses murder case appeal

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

Email: anchalo@newsobahrain.com

The High Appeals Court has upheld the life imprisonment sentence of a 40-year-old man convicted of the premeditated murder of a European woman, rejecting his appeal. The defendant, who initially confessed to the crime but later recanted his statement, remains silent regarding the victim’s whereabouts. Her body has never been found.

The court’s decision concludes a tumultuous legal battle that began over a year after the woman’s disappearance. The defendant’s initial confession, detailed in the original High Criminal Court trial, described meeting the victim on Facebook, inviting her to his home, and subsequently suffocating her after a night of drug use and alcohol.

He claimed to have disposed of her body by burning it in a remote location. Testimony This confession, along with testimony from the victim’s mother in Kazakhstan (provided via video link), formed the cornerstone of the prosecution’s case. However, the defendant’s subsequent recantation, claiming the victim left his home alive the following morning, cast significant doubt on the murder charge.

His defense lawyer argued that the lack of a body raised serious questions about the prosecution’s case. Despite the recantation and the absence of the victim’s body, the Appeals Court found the prosecution’s evidence, including the initial confession and other forensic evidence, sufficient to uphold the conviction.

Narcotics The defendant’s separate convictions for providing narcotics for a fee (resulting in a 10-year sentence and a BD3,000) and violating the sanctity of the victim’s body (a six-month sentence) also remain in effect.

The case will now proceed to the Court of Cassation, Bahrain’s highest court of appeal, where the defendant will have a final opportunity to challenge his conviction. The mystery surrounding the victim’s disappearance, and the lack of a body, remain central to the ongoing legal proceedings.