Death-row husband says evidence 'lacking'

CID reports surrounding the murder of a Syrian woman by her Egyptian husband contradict each other, appeals court hears.

ABU DHABI // A man sentenced to death for murdering his wife has told the Appeals Court that police reports were contradictory and forensic evidence was lacking.

AJM, an Egyptian, is appealing against his conviction for the murder of his Syrian wife on September 24, 2009.

She was found in a pool of blood in their Al Gharbia home by her brother. Police arrested the husband in Bahrain 48 hours later.

The husband's car was found in Baniyas but he told the court yesterday the accounts by a lieutenant and major of when it was found were contradictory. The lieutenant said he found it at a car wash before the man's arrest, but the major said the husband led police to his car after his arrest.

The husband said there were discrepancies in reports as to whether his brother-in-law was present when the officers arrived.

He also said he could not have caught his flight to Sudan, via Bahrain, at Abu Dhabi airport if he had killed his wife at 7am, the time of death in the police report.

The judge asked the doctor who examined the body about the wife's nails, which were taken for testing to see if they matched scratches on her husband's chest, but no results were given.

The judge said there was also no mention of whether her teeth matched bite marks on the husband's hand.

The doctor said he had not written the report, but "usually they would mention in the report that no results were found if they did not find any". The case was adjourned until June 13.