A mentally unwell man, accused of stabbing his neighbour to death in Shakhoora, allegedly slept in graveyards and had hallucinations where he perceived some individuals as animals, the court heard.
Two siblings of the ‘paranoid’ murder suspect, a 40-something Bahraini man, were cross-examined before the High Criminal Court about their ‘disturbed’ brother yesterday.
“My brother sees bad people as animals,” the defendant’s sister testified.
“He wanders around the village barefoot, and sometimes sleeps in cemeteries.
“Ever since he left the psychiatric hospital, he started experiencing delusions and seeing things that aren’t real. He also became more introverted.
“There, he developed a serious paranoia of security cameras or of being recorded. Once, my daughter took a photo of him, he got quite agitated and asked her to delete it.”
The suspect earlier admitted to charges of killing Ali Mahdi Albasri, aged 57, ambushing him outside his apartment early in the morning in February.
Both his sister and brother told the court yesterday about his phobia of security cameras, echoing what their other brother stated in the previous hearing.
“Our brother destroyed the victim’s cameras at least five times – the first time, the victim said nothing, but he lodged complaints after it happened again,” his male sibling said yesterday.
“He doesn’t have a phone, doesn’t leave the house or interact with anyone in the village.
“He refuses to take his psychiatric medications. He also cannot hold down a job, spending three to six months in each role, at the most, before causing problems and getting fired.”
A representative of the Public Prosecution told the court that the brother’s testimony before judges contradicted his statements before the prosecution.
The prosecutor argued that the witness claimed his brother was ‘mentally disturbed’ and yet, told the prosecution that he was in an ‘alright situation’ last time he saw him.
The witness clarified that he simply meant the defendant ‘did not appear to be aggressive’.
Meanwhile, an attorney representing the family and estate of the victim scoffed at the defence’s attempt to ‘plead insanity’.
He pointed out that the courtroom was filled with security cameras and yet the defendant did not have any outbursts across the trial’s six hearings.
The lawyer earlier submitted a request to sue the defendant for damages in Civil Court.
The GDN previously reported a medical examiner’s testimony that the late Mr Albasri was stabbed seven times, with a knife, in the neck, chest and abdomen, confirming that the attack was the ‘direct cause of death’.
On February 27, the body of Mr Albasri was found riddled with stab wounds outside his apartment building in Shakhoora, and was buried in his hometown of Janusan.
Upon the death of Mr Albasri, hundreds of condolence messages poured in from people who remembered him as a pious man and an active member of his community.
According to the Public Prosecution, there was a history of disputes between the two men.
On the day of the incident, the late Mr Albasri is said to have left his home at 6.30am to get breakfast for his family, when he ‘got into a fight over a parking spot’ with the defendant, which allegedly ended in his death.
The murder suspect, a relative of the slain man, had reportedly told policemen that he was waiting for the victim to leave his apartment, so he could attack him and end his life.
The defendant’s lawyer asked judges to move his client back to the Psychiatric Hospital.
Judges adjourned the hearing to June 2 for defence arguments.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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