Top court hands death sentence to Farah’s killer

KUWAIT: The court of cassation, headed by Abdullah Al-Jassem, canceled a ruling by the court of appeal and sentenced the killer of Kuwaiti woman Farah Akbar to death by hanging. The body of Akbar, a 32-year-old mother of two, was left outside a hospital on April 20, 2021 after she was snatched in broad daylight by the convict, a Kuwaiti defense ministry soldier.

On June 3, 2022, the court of appeal, headed by Nasr Al-Haid, overturned the criminal court’s death penalty verdict against the defendant, and sentenced him to life imprisonment, after he was convicted of kidnapping and murder. The court justified reducing the sentence after one of the conditions for premeditated murder was not met, despite the prosecution’s request for the maximum penalty and upholding the death sentence issued by the criminal court. The public prosecution then appealed the verdict and demanded the death sentence, while the defendant’s defense also appealed the verdict and demanded it be reduced even further.

The killing of Farah Akbar had caused public outrage, as the convict kidnapped the victim in front of passersby and despite the presence of the victim’s children at the scene. The man, who had persisted in stalking Akbar despite several complaints to authorities, dragged her from a car during the holy month of Ramadan, according to investigations in the case.

Akbar had previously filed two harassment complaints against the man who had proposed to her although she was already married. He had been arrested but was released on bail. The interior ministry said at the time of the murder that Akbar was stabbed in the chest. The attacker was arrested shortly afterwards and confessed to the crime, sparking calls for his execution. After the killing, some 200 people, including men, rallied to mourn the victim and demand tougher penalties for violence against women.

 

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