Man handed 12 year-prison term for attempted murder

AMMAN — The Cassation Court has upheld a May Criminal Court ruling, sentencing a taxi driver to 12 years in prison after convicting him of attempting to murder his former in-law in Balqa Governorate in November 2020.

The Criminal Court declared the defendant guilty of attempted murder, stemming from “a heated dispute” with the victim over a divorce matter, on November 27 in Salt. The defendant was given the maximum sentence.

Court papers said the victim and the defendant had constant feuds over the latter’s decision to divorce the victim’s sibling.

On the day of the incident, the court maintained, the defendant followed the victim in his taxi.

The minute the victim parked his vehicle, the defendant ran towards him waving a gun and shouted: “I told you I was going to make you permanently disabled,” court papers said.

“The defendant fired one bullet at the victim’s thigh and fled the scene,” the court documents maintained.

The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital and survived the shooting incident after undergoing a few surgeries, the court papers added.

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

The lawyers also charged that the “prosecution office failed to provide solid evidence to implicate the defendant”.

The Criminal Court’s attorney general asked the higher court to uphold the 12-year sentence ruling.

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, Hammad Ghzawi, Nayef Samarat, Qassem Dughmi and Mohammad Khashashneh.