Man gets 8-year jail term for murder attempt of brother-in-law

AMMAN — The Cassation Court has upheld a February Criminal Court ruling, sentencing a man to eight years in prison after convicting him of attempting to murder his brother-in-law in Amman in August 2019.

The Criminal Court declared the defendant guilty of attempted murder, stemming from “a heated dispute” with the victim, on August 10. The defendant was given the maximum sentence of 12 years.

However, the court decided to reduce the sentence to eight years in prison because the victim dropped charges against the defendant.

Court papers said the defendant had an old feud with the victim and headed to his house to discuss the matter.

"The defendant was armed with a sharp object," court documents said.

The minute he saw the victim, the court maintained, the two engaged in “a heated argument” and he beat him up and the defendant fell.

“The defendant drew the sharp object and stabbed the victim once in the back causing a 12-centimetre-wide wound,” court papers said.

The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital and survived the stabbing incident after undergoing surgery, the court papers added.

The defendant contested his ruling via his lawyer arguing that there were “legal errors in the investigation procedures”.

The Criminal Court’s attorney general asked the higher court to uphold the eight-year sentence.

The higher court ruled that the Criminal Court proceedings were accurate and that the defendant was given the appropriate punishment.

The Cassation Court bench comprised judges Mohammad Ibrahim, Ibrahim Abu Shamma, Fawzi Nahar, Majid Azab and Hayel Amr.