Kuwait court upholds death sentence for man who ran over wife in desert
Psychiatric assessment found defendant was mentally responsible for his actions
Dubai: Kuwait’s Court of Appeals has upheld a death sentence against a Kuwaiti man convicted of deliberately killing his wife by running her over with his vehicle in the Mutlaa desert during Eid Al Fitr, local media reported.
Court records showed the man was convicted of premeditated murder after luring his wife to a remote area in Mutlaa and running her over on March 30, 2025, the first day of Eid Al Fitr. Prosecutors had also charged him with kidnapping by deception and possession of psychotropic substances for personal use.
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Reports said the defendant had assaulted his wife in the Mutlaa desert during the final days of Ramadan, prompting her to leave their marital home and stay with her family. He later persuaded her to return and told her he had a surprise for her on the first day of Eid, before taking her to the desert where the killing occurred. The victim left behind four children, including an infant, according to court reports.
The Criminal Court had earlier sentenced the man to death, but the Court of Appeals in May ordered that he undergo a specialist psychiatric assessment to determine his mental state and criminal responsibility at the time of the offence.
The subsequent psychiatric report found that he was aware of his actions at the time of the killing. It also concluded that he had exaggerated or feigned symptoms of an illness that he did not have, based on a malingering assessment.
The findings provided no basis for relieving him of criminal responsibility, and the appeals court upheld the death sentence.
