Four men charged with premeditated murder of radio talk show host

AMMAN — The criminal court prosecutor has charged four men with premeditated murder in connection with the killing and robbery of Lebanese radio talk show host Mazen Diab at his home in an Amman suburb in mid-August, official sources said Sunday.

The 31-year-old, who worked at Sawt Al Ghad local radio station, was found dead with his hands tied behind his back in his apartment in the Prince Rashed neighbourhood near Mecca Mall in west Amman on August 15.

Four suspects were arrested the day after his body was discovered.

Criminal Court Prosecutor Ishaq Abu Awad completed his investigation and prepared an indictment sheet on November 30 and sent it to the attorney general’s office for review, a senior judicial source said.

“If the general attorney approves the indictment sheet, which is usually the case, then the case will be referred to the court to set a trial date,” the source told The Jordan Times.

According to the charge sheet, the four suspects resided in a furnished apartment in Jubeiha and met the victim through the Internet.

“The suspects tricked the victim by convincing him that they wanted to be his friends, but in reality they wanted to rob and kill him,” the charge sheet said, adding that they entered Diab’s apartment as friends.

“The suspects strangled Diab with a traditional head dress [shmagh] that was hanging on the wall as a decoration,” the charge sheet noted.

The four men then stomped on the victim with their feet until they made sure he was dead and filled two bags with his belongings, which included a mobile, laptop, colognes, a wallet, suits, ties and a camera, the charge sheet stated.

The suspects left the apartment carrying the stolen items, but two of the men dropped one bag and fled when  they saw a police vehicle in the area, a second source said.

When police searched the bag, they found the mobile, and after thorough investigation, they discovered the murder and arrested the suspects after reviewing footage from cameras placed on a building near the victim’s apartment.

If convicted of the charges, the suspects could face the death penalty.

Diab hosted a live talk show that was aired on Sawt Al Ghad at 5pm titled “Wo inta mraweh” (While heading home from work).

The victim, who was single, had been residing in the Kingdom for the past eight years and was a cancer survivor who dedicated part of his life towards raising awareness on cancer in Jordan and the region.

He produced a documentary on cancer titled “Ija Dawry” (It was my turn), which he distributed to schools, local NGOs and government institutions.