JORDAN: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR RAPE, DOUBLE MURDER

November 18, 2009: Judges Atef Jaradat, Qassem Dughmi and Nahar Ghazo of the Amman Criminal Court in Jordan sentenced an unidentified 26 year old man to death for murdering a man, 60, and raping and killing his daughter, 13, in Ajloun on May 27, 2008.
"The defendant cursed the court and maintained his innocence after hearing the guilty verdict," a judicial source told The Jordan Times.
The defendant was arrested by police shortly after the victims’ bodies were discovered three days after the attack.
Authorities traced the victims’ mobile phones, which linked them to the defendant, the court papers said.
The court said it relied on DNA evidence in its conviction, including samples taken from the murdered girl's body, which matched the DNA of the defendant, according to court transcripts.
Criminal Prosecutor Jihad Dureidi had asked the court to hand the suspect the maximum punishment because of the "heinous crime he committed".
The verdict will automatically be reviewed by the Cassation Court within the next 30 days. (Sources: Plus News Pakistan, 25/11/2009)