Bahrain court detains couple accused of murdering baby

Manama : The High Criminal Court has renewed the detention of a couple accused of beating a three-month baby to death by another 15 days, pending further investigations. 

The accused in this case include a Bahraini father and his GCC national wife, who is the step-mother of the boy. The baby’s real mother, an Arab national, was divorced by his father and left Bahrain.

The Public Prosecution held the father in police custody after his wife accused him of causing the death of the child. But a tapped phone conversation between the duo revealed the woman apologising to him as the child fell on his head while she was bathing him.

As per court files, the child was taken to hospital suffering from head injuries and succumbed to his wounds after four days. The father said that his wife had told him that the child fell on his head. But she gave a different account to what happened, stating that his father punched his head because “he was crying a lot.”

A forensic report confirmed that the child suffered a fatal physical attack to his head, but the father blamed the stepmother. Now with evidence of the tapped phone call, the woman is also charged in connection with this case.

The Bahraini father earlier appeared before the High Criminal Court, pleading not guilty to charges of causing the death of the boy.