Man who stabbed neighbour over parking declared mentally fit

TDT | Manama

The First High Criminal Court declared yesterday the mental stability of a Bahraini man who stabbed his neighbour in 2019, after more than a year after of deliberating his mental fitness.

This came after the court reviewed a report issued by the Psychiatric Hospital on the man’s mental condition, which confirmed that he is mentally fit and is showing responsible for his actions.

The Court announced that it is adjourning the case to April 6 to resume the trial of the defendant, who apparently stabbed the victim in a residential neighbourhood in Galali after a dispute over a parking spot.

This is the second time that the 23-year-old has been examined by the hospital, which earlier stated that he does not suffer from any chronic diseases or auditory hallucinations. However, it mentioned that he suffers from slight mental retardation and cannot judge complex or medium matters.

The defendant has had a file at the hospital since 2011, but he has not followed up with psychiatrists on a regular basis. According to police investigations, the man stabbed the 48-year-old victim multiple times before escaping the spot and leaving him in a pool of blood.

The stabbing incident took place on February 12 last year in Galali in the Muharraq Governorate. He was arrested the same day. Investigations also revealed that the accused, who is facing charges of attempted murder, had the intention to kill the victim, as he prepared a knife for this purpose and monitored the victim’s movements, and while the latter was walking on a public road when the stabbing occurred.

It was also shown that both men, who are neighbours, had verbal disputes multiple times before the incident took place. The victim was rushed by ambulance to King Hamad University Hospital, where he later recovered from his injuries.