Abu Dhabi: The Public Prosecution on Tuesday demanded death penalty for a Pakistani man accused of raping and strangling his 11-year-old nephew.
The incident occurred during the month of Ramadan in May.
The boy, Azan Majid Janjua, went missing and his body was found on his building’s rooftop in the morning of May 30 when an AC technician went to the area to check a malfunctioning chiller. The boy’s body was half naked, with a copy of the Quran next to him. Traces of rope marks were found around the boy’s neck along with the rope used by the accused.
The prosecutor termed the suspect a “wild beast” who showed no sanctity for the month of Ramadan and the Quran as the boy begged to be released from the noose.
The defence lawyer claimed the accused was psychologically unfit and demanded a professional evaluation of his mental capacity before the court. During the third hearing on October 11, it was established that the accused is mentally and psychologically fit to stand trial. Medical records submitted to the Abu Dhabi Criminal Court affirmed his mental fitness.
“This man who is standing in front of me [pointing to the accused] looks like a human but he is actually a heartless wild beast who mercilessly killed an innocent boy who kept begging for his life,” the prosecution told the court on Tuesday.
“During the month of Ramadan when all Muslims observe the fast, this man [accused] raped and murdered his own nephew, a boy he termed as being ‘very close to my heart’,” the prosecutor said.
The prosecutor also told the court that the accused also sought to disguise himself in an abaya [during the crime]. Later, he dumped the garb in a waste bin. The accused is also charged with driving a vehicle without a front number plate, he said.
After hearing the detailed narrative of the case, the father of the boy, who was present in the courtroom, burst into tears.
Dr Majid Janjua, the boy’s father, told Gulf News earlier that Azan was fasting and had gone to the mosque for afternoon prayers and Quran recitation and then went missing. Some neighbours saw the boy returning from the mosque but he never reached home. An extensive search by the family for the boy proved futile.
Azan was Dr Janjua’s first son by his first wife whom he met while studying medicine in Russia. As they did not live together for a while, Azan, who was also a Russian national, lived with his mother in Russia.
As part of a mutual agreement between parents, Azan started living with his father around two-and-a-half years ago.
The mother, who would visit her son in Abu Dhabi, was in the city when the tragedy occurred.
Dr Janjua has been living in the same building for the past six years with his father, his second wife and two young children.
The Public Prosecution handed over a detailed copy of the incident to the presiding judge of Abu Dhabi Criminal Court and to the defence lawyer.
The defence lawyer requested the presiding judge to study the claims of the prosecution and also sought time to read the case details.
The case has been adjourned to October 31.
