Man handed 10-year prison sentence for attempted murder

AMMAN — The Cassation Court has upheld a June Criminal Court ruling, sentencing a man to 10 years in prison after convicting him of attempting to murder two men in an Eastern Amman suburb in April 2020.

The Criminal Court declared the defendant guilty of attempted murder, stemming from “a heated dispute” with one of the victims, on April 24.

The second victim was a bystander who was near the scene where he was shot and injured.

The defendant was first given a 12-year prison term. However, the court reduced the sentence to 10 years because the victims dropped the charges against him.

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

An argument ensued, during which the victim and the defendant headed to the defendant’s vehicle, where he grabbed a pump-action shotgun, the court documents said.

“The defendant fired one round which struck the victim and the second man who was standing nearby,” according to the court papers.

The victims were rushed to a nearby hospital where they were treated for their injuries.

Attending physicians deemed their injuries to be non-life threatening.

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

The defence also argued that the court depended on “weak and contradictory statements”.

The Criminal Court’s attorney general asked the higher court to uphold the 10-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, Hammad Ghzawi, Yassin Abdullat, Nayef Samarat and Qassem Dughmi.