Dubai: Lebanese singer Suzan Tamim was not decapitated - her throat was slit, said Dr Khalid Al Muhairi, the attorney of her husband Adel Al Matouk and managing partner at Emirates Advocates.
Contrary to earlier reports that had said Suzan was decapitated, the death certificate clearly indicates the cause of death as 'cut in the throat's tissues.' All other reports about body mutilation are false, according to him.
In an exclusive interview with Gulf News, Dr Al Muhairi confirmed that Suzan had been married to Lebanese businessman Adel Matouk at the time of her death and that there is no third husband.
Riad Al Azzawi, a Briton of Iraqi origin, had written letters to some Arabic newspapers claiming that he was her third husband.
"Whoever claims to be her husband can come forward with a marriage contract as a proof of marriage," Dr Al Muhairi said.
Official procedures
She had moved to Dubai and bought a flat in Jumeirah Beach Residence, Rimal 1 Tower, around eight months before the murder took place.
According to Dr Al Muhairi, she owns the apartment in which she lived; it is not the property of her husband Al Matouk.
Al Matouk arrived in Dubai several days before Suzan's body was sent to Lebanon.
"He was here to follow- up on the crime investigations," Dr Al Muhairi said. He did not take her body back home, however. It was sent through the Lebanese Consulate in Dubai.
"We chose to keep the procedure official and do it through the Lebanese Consulate here," Al Muhairi said. The death certificate was sent along with the body and Al Matouk's attorney holds a copy of it.
According to Dr Al Muhairi, Matouk stayed in Dubai for a couple of days before he headed back to Beirut.
"To my knowledge, the couple were not in any feud. Suzan had moved countries to pursue her career, and it is not unusual for a married couple not to be living together if they sort it out between themselves," he said.
Murder suspect
This refutes earlier reports that the couple had fought and the husband had banned her from leaving the country when she moved to Cairo.
He added that her husband is certainly not a suspect in her murder.
"Adel Matouk is a respectable, known businessman and there was no reason for him to ever commit such an act. He was devastated to hear the news of her death," said Dr Al Muhairi.
Despite several reports that Suzan's bodyguard, Riad Al Azzawi, had prevented people from having access to the singer, Dr Al Muhairi said that that did not affect the relationship between Al Matouk and Suzan, as they still communicated.
He said: "The police are currently carrying out investigations. They have come a long way." He did not say whether anyone has been accused of the murder yet.
