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Two murder suspects, who allegedly confessed to coming to Bahrain with the express purpose of killing a compatriot over a long-standing family feud, have now denied charges before the High Criminal Court.
The two Pakistani men are on trial for the premeditated murder of fellow Pakistani Ahmed Wasif, whom they allegedly stalked for weeks before stabbing him to death in retaliation for the killing of their cousin.
The attorney, representing the suspects, presented his defence before the court yesterday, dismissing the accusations against his clients.
He claimed that the confessions were untrue, the accusations were ‘made up’, the detective’s testimony ‘was just an opinion’, and the security camera recording of the incident was invalid.
He also made references to their testimonies, which the court did not grant the media access to, giving never-before-seen glimpses into the complex history behind the defendants and the victim.
“The defendants’ statements are contradictory,” claimed the lawyer. “For example, one said that the other was injured during the initial incident in Pakistan, while the other denies it.”
By the ‘initial incident’, the attorney could be referencing to the alleged murder carried out by the victim, though it is unclear what he means.
“The confessions were forced, and contradict the autopsy.
“The autopsy itself contradicts another autopsy – one issued by the police and one by a coroner.
“There is a discrepancy between the number of stabs and injuries suffered by the victim, and where the injuries were in his body.”
The lawyer went on to make claims about ‘human nature’ and why someone may feel the need to give a false confession.
“Due to human nature, the defendants admitted to a crime carrying heavy penalties, in a way that defies logic.
“Self-preservation usually leads people to deny what may harm them, but some may make confessions that clearly contradict reality and physical evidence.
“There are many reasons for someone to admit to a crime they didn’t do. It may be a result of a psychological condition, or wanting to protect another person, or the desire to be done with an emotionally-taxing investigation.
“We ask the court not to lend the confession any weight or value.”
The attorney also claimed that the informant, who provided the tip-off about the defendants, may have been motivated by previously harboured animosity towards the duo.
He further attempted to dismiss the Public Prosecution’s smoking gun, CCTV footage of the assault and murder, by arguing that ‘it’s not a testimony’ and claiming that it is impossible to identify the defendants in the dark.
To support this point, he also claimed that the witnesses did not actually see the Pakistani men’s faces or witness them in the act.
The GDN earlier reported the details of the alleged murder, and the events that led up to it.
According to court documents, the two men travelled from Pakistan to Bahrain to exact revenge on the victim, shadowing him for six weeks before ambushing him in a dark alley and fatally stabbing him.
The suspects, aged 25 and 28, were arrested just three hours after the incident as they were attempting to flee the country via King Fahad Causeway, thanks to an alert issued by the police.
The court heard that the victim, Mr Ahmed, had previously been convicted of murder in Pakistan and was jailed for 12 years, as per his brother’s account.
After completing his sentence, he reportedly survived several attempts on his life by the suspects. He later moved to Bahrain seeking safety, having failed to get the forgiveness of the family of the man he had killed.
The defendants testified that they were relatives of the man slain by the victim in Pakistan, and tracked him down to Bahrain to settle family scores.
They had followed Mr Ahmed into Saudi Arabia, where he went to perform Umrah pilgrimage, and back to Bahrain.
After months on his trail, the duo allegedly surrounded him in a dimly-lit residential alley in Budaiya, and attacked him with sharpened knives, only stopping their onslaught when he was dead.
The Public Prosecution earlier showed the courtroom a video recording of the December 28 incident, caught by security cameras near the crime scene.
The video showed them surrounding their target – the first coming at him from the front and the second attacking him from behind.
A representative of the prosecution gave a speech to the court, describing the alleged murder as an ‘execution’, and asked the judges to punish the defendants with no mercy.
Forensic experts found the victim’s blood on both the knife and the cleaver, and also recovered his blood from under the first defendant’s fingernails and on the second’s trousers.
The avengers admitted to the charges before the prosecution, two separate courts, and also re-enacted the murder to police detectives.
In last week’s hearing, the victim’s brother testified that one of the defendants had previously murdered another brother of his in Greece.
Both brothers had fled Pakistan seeking safety, but the revenge-fuelled suspects crossed continents and borders to perform their grim ‘duty’.
Judges set April 14 as the day a verdict will be issued in the case.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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