A Doha Criminal Court yesterday asked the family of an American teacher murdered in Qatar to provide an attested certificate specifying the legal heirs of the deceased.
Jennifer Brown, 40, from Pennsylvania in the US, was murdered by an African security guard in her company-provided home in November 2012.
The victim had been in Qatar for only two months before she was killed, sources said. She had arrived in Qatar to assume a teaching position in a private school. The accused has reportedly confessed to the crime.
The presiding judge demanded that the representative of the family of the teacher also provide a special authorisation for the lawyer appointed by them to speak before the court.
Besides, this authorisation should clearly state the decision of the legal heirs of the teacher whether they demanded the death penalty for the accused, in accordance with the Islamic law, accept blood money (QR200,000) or pardon him.
The court adjourned the case for further hearing to March 8.
THEFT CASE HEARING: A Criminal court yesterday heard the witness in a case of selling of stolen electronic goods.
According to the witness, the accused approached him at his shop with some computers in open boxes and offered to sell them at reasonable price. “I asked for a copy of his ID and bought the computers from him. I also asked him to sign in a register kept at the shop for this purpose.”
The shop manager said: “After the accused left, a staff member raised the doubt that the machines could have been stolen from the store of a local distributor. We contacted the distributor and gave them the serial numbers of the machines and they eventually confirmed that these were stolen from their store. Immediately, we reported the matter to the police.”
Asked how the accused was caught, he said he offered to buy more computers from him and asked him to visit the shop again. “When he came, the police arrested him.”
However, the lawyer of the accused asked whether the witness demanded a purchase bill when he bought the computers. The shop manager replied that the common practice in the local market was to buy such used things from a seller, who is able to provide his ID. “The seller may not be able to provide the purchase bill as it could be lost or damaged.”
As the lawyer wanted to hear more witnesses, the judge
adjourned the case.
