Man charged with manslaughter in connection with stabbing death of sister

AMMAN — The Criminal Court prosecutor on Wednesday charged a man with manslaughter in connection with the alleged stabbing death of his younger sister “for reasons related to family honour”  in Irbid a day earlier, official sources said.

The 21-year-old victim was allegedly stabbed in the neck by her brother, who is in his late 20s, on Tuesday night at her family’s home, Police Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi said.

“The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital in critical condition, and died shortly after being admitted,” Sartawi told The Jordan Times.

A senior judicial source close to the investigation told The Jordan Times that the suspect “stabbed his sister following a heated argument over alleged immoral acts”.

“The suspect grabbed a dagger he owned and stabbed the victim in the neck,” according to the senior judicial source.

The parents and siblings of the suspect and the victim were not home at the time of the incident, the senior judicial source added.

The suspect was arrested shortly after the incident, according to the senior judicial source.

The source added that investigations conducted by the police and Criminal Court Prosecutor Farhan Abdullah concluded that the “victim was not engaged in any immoral act”.

“Our investigations indicated that the victim was not seeing anyone or engaged in any illegitimate activities as the suspect claimed in his initial testimony,” the senior judicial source said.

Farhan also ordered that a knife that was seized at the crime scene be sent to the crime lab for further analysis, according to the senior judicial source.

An autopsy conducted by a team of pathologists at Irbid’s National Institute of Forensic Medicine indicated that the victim died of two stab wounds to the neck, a senior medical source said.

“Pathologists did not detect any defence wounds on the victim’s hands, which is an indication that she had no idea that she was going to be stabbed by the suspect,” the senior medical source told The Jordan Times.

The criminal court prosecutor ordered the detention of the suspect at a correctional and rehabilitation centre by the criminal court prosecutor for 15 days pending further investigation.