[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

September 14



NIGERIA:

Court slams death penalty on armed robber in Ondo



Ondo State High Court sitting in Akure, the state capital on Thursday sentenced 
one James Ofem, an armed robbery culprit, to death by hanging.

Ofem was part of the notorious robbery gang terrorizing residents and mostly 
motorists on the Ondo/ Ore road and had been the security watch list for a long 
time.

Presiding Judge, Justice Williams Olamide, who delivered the judgement said 
that Ofem, the convict, was guilty of the 2 count charge of conspiracy and 
armed robbery made against him.

He said that the witnesses brought to court to testify on the case made 
allusion to use of arms in the armed robbery attacks executed by Ofem.

According to Justice Olamide, the prosecution had proven the robbery case 
beyond reasonable doubt with lot evidences that the accused was indeed guilty 
of the crime.

Wale Bamisile, the Prosecutor from Department of Public Prosecution, (DPP) in 
the Ondo State Ministry of Justice had recalled how Ofem with his gang on July 
12, 2017 conspired to robbed Adamu Mustapha off his CoolPad phone, Infinix and 
Nokia handsets.

Another witness, Sergeant Franklin Alabi of Enuowa Police Station who tendered 
the exhibit recovered from the suspect before the court noted that 
investigation into the case all revealed that the culprit was found culpable in 
the robbery case.

He narrated how the police received a distress call about the robbery attack 
which took place on the Ore road which prompted the anti-robbery squad to swing 
into action.

Adamu Mustapha, who was also in the court and served as witness to corroborate 
the prosecutor account, explained that he and a motor-boy were waylaid by 
Ofem's robbery gang around the liyetu village on the Ondo/Ore road.

Mustapha added that the gang laid barricade on the road and their bus rammed 
into it while the hoodlums emerged from the bush, beat them mercilessly and 
robbed 2 of them of their personal belongings.

According to him, "I and my motorboy ran into a barricade on the Ondo/Ore road 
and suddenly from no where the armed robbers emerged, they beat us mercilessly 
and in the process robbed us of our clothes, phones and a sum of N52, 710.

"We reported the case to the Police Station at Enuowa Division in Ondo town and 
few days later they called us that they have recovered stolen items and also 
arrested the culprits."

(source: The Nation)








PAKISTAN:

Death sentence in blasphemy case



A man was sentenced to death and a Rs50,000 fine by Additional District and 
Sessions Court Judge Raja Safder Iqbal on Thursday in a blasphemy case 
registered with Yousafwala Police Station in 2015.

In case of default on fine payment, convict Arshad Sardar will undergo 6 months 
imprisonment.

Complainant Hanif Athar said Arshad Sardar, a faith healer of village 93/9-L, 
uttered blasphemous words about sacred religious personalities.

The case was registered on May 5, 2015.

(source: dawn.com)








INDONESIA:

4 Sarawakians caught with syabu may face death penalty



4 Sarawakians, including a husband and wife, may face the death penalty when 
they were caught with a total of 455grams of syabu worth RM50,000 on Tuesday.

City police chief ACP Habibi Majinji said the suspects, aged 19 to 42, were 
arrested following a tip-off of a drug transaction taking place at a restaurant 
in the city centre around 6.40pm on September 11.

"The 1st arrest were made against 2 men at the restaurant where police found 3 
small plastic packets that contained crystal like substance believed to be 
syabu.

"Interrogation of 1 of the suspects then led police to a condominium in Luyang 
the same day.

"Search inside the premise found 2 plastic packets, 1 large and 1 small, which 
contained crystal like substance believed to be syabu," he said, adding that 
the couple who was inside the condominium was subsequently detained.

Habibi said investigation revealed the total drugs weight at 455grams with 
market price at RM50,000.

Police also confiscated a Mitsubishi Triton, a Toyota Innova, 4 luxurious 
watches, 7 cell phones and 3 bank book.

The suspects have been remanded for 7 days and the case will be investigated 
under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, which carries the mandatory 
death penalty upon conviction.

(source: The Borneo Post)








IRAN----executions

Man Hanged at Saravan Prison



1 prisoner was executed at Saravan Prison on murder charges.

According to a close source, on the morning of Wednesday, September 12, a 
prisoner who was sentenced to death on murder charges was executed at Saravan 
Prison. The prisoner was identified as Nazir Ahmad Gomshadzehi from Saravan.

Habibollah Sarbazi, Baluchi human rights activist, told IHR, "Nazir Ahmad was 
in prison for 3 years and 5 months. His funeral was held yesterday evening."

According to a report by Baluch Activists Campaign, Nazir Ahmad Gomshadzehi was 
arrested in 2015.

The execution of this prisoner has not been announced by the state-run media so 
far.

According to Iran Human Rights annual report on the death penalty, 240 of the 
517 execution sentences in 2017 were implemented due to murder charges. There 
is a lack of a classification of murder by degree in Iran which results in 
issuing a death sentence for any kind of murder regardless of intensity and 
intent.

**********************

Man Hanged in Public



A man who was sentenced to death on the charge of harassing and murdering a 
13-year-old teenager was hanged in public in Marvdasht.

According to the state-run news agency, Mizan, on the morning of Thursday, 
September 13, a prisoner was hanged in public in Marvdasht. The prisoner was 
arrested and sentenced to death on the charge of kidnapping, injuring, 
harassing, and murdering a 13-year-old teenager.

The report states, "The murderer kidnaps and takes the 13-year-old teenager to 
the mountains and harasses him mentally and physically for 15 days. Afterwards, 
he throws him down the mountain."

It should be noted that public executions have repeatedly been criticized by 
the United Nations. Both the UN Secretary-General and the Special Rapporteur on 
the human rights situation in Iran have expressed concern about the continued 
practice of public executions in Iran.

***************

Iran Executions and the Cycle of Violence: Victim's Brother Murdered in 
Retaliation for the Execution of the Murderer



After the execution of one of his relatives, a 38-year-old man stabbed the 
victim's brother to death in retaliation. Many social science experts believe 
that Qisas leads to an increase in violence in a society.

According to a report by Rokna news agency, Sarallah Hospital reported the 
murder of a 45-year-old man who was stabbed with a knife and a stick in April. 
The man, named Qasem, was attacked in front of his house and transferred to the 
hospital by his family.

The victim's wife said to the police, "My husband left home to go to work early 
in the morning. A short while after he left, someone rang the doorbell."

She continued, "I went out and saw my husband wounded severely. My son and 
neighbours came to help after they heard my screams. Then we took my husband to 
the hospital but he passed away. We had no idea who had done that. I suspect 
the family of the person who murdered my brother-in-law in a street fight 10 
years ago. The convict's family tried so hard to gain the consent of the 
plaintiffs but then he was executed in November last year anyway. Later, the 
convict's brother and his friends beat and injured my other brother-in-law. We 
filed a complaint against them and an arrest warrant was issued for the 
convict's brother."

She added, "They kept harassing us. Even their sister threatened me to death."

Finally, a 38-year-old man who worked at a bakery told the police, "The convict 
was one of my relatives. I went to the plaintiffs along with his family several 
times in order to gain their consent but we failed and he was executed last 
year."

He added, "We held a grudge against the victim's family. When I saw how 
horrible the convict's family felt, I decided to take action and punish the 
victim's family myself."

He continued, "I made a plan with my friend and took a stick and knife from his 
house. We waited outside the man's house until he came out in his car. We 
attacked and injured him and then we escaped. The next day I heard that he was 
dead. We didn't mean to kill him."

Apart from discussions about whether the death penalty is right or wrong, it 
should be considered that according to the laws of the Islamic Republic of 
Iran, murder is punished by Qisas; that is, the family of the victim decides 
whether the defendant lives or dies which is nothing more than revenge. One of 
the reasons civil activists and human rights organizations are against Qisas is 
that it increases violence in a society. According to the law of Iran, the 
government devolves the responsibility of execution to the victims' families.

******************

Forgiveness instead of Qisas: Prisoner Saved from Execution in Iran



Rashid Sandakzehi, whose transference to the solitary confinement was reported 
by IHR earlier, was able to win the consent of the plaintiffs and returned to 
his cell.

According to a close source, on the morning of Thursday, September 6, Rashid 
Sandakzehi was transferred to the solitary confinement. On the morning of 
Saturday, September 8, the prisoner, who was sentenced to death on murder 
charges, was scheduled to be executed but he was able to win the consent of the 
plaintiffs and returned to his cell.

According to a report by HRANA, the prisoner was transferred to the solitary 
confinement from ward 4 of Zahedan Central Prison.

Rashid Sandakzehi was transferred to the solitary confinement 2 months ago but 
he was able to ask for time from the plaintiffs.

According to the law of Qisas, the victim's family decides whether the convict 
lives or dies which is nothing more than revenge and can lead to an increase in 
violence in a society.

(source for all: Iran Human Rights)

****************

Halt Imminent Execution (Iran: UA 151.18)

Urgent Action

SYRIAN KURD AT IMMINENT RISK OF EXECUTION IN IRAN

On 13 August, Kamal Hassan Ramezan, a Syrian Kurd on death row in Iran, was 
removed from his cell in Urumieh Central Prison in the city of Urumieh, West 
Azerbaijan province, by officials from the Office for the Implementation of 
Sentences. He has not been heard from since. He is at imminent risk of 
execution.

Write a letter, send an email, call, fax or tweet:

* Halt any plans to execute Kamal Hassan Ramezan, quash both his convictions 
and death sentence, and grant him retrials in line with international fair 
trial standards without recourse to the death penalty;

* Order a prompt, independent, effective, and impartial investigation into his 
allegations of torture and other ill-treatment, bringing to justice anyone 
found responsible in fair trials and without recourse to the death penalty, and 
ensure that he has access to adequate specialized medical care outside prison;

* Establish an official moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the 
death penalty.

Friendly reminder: If you send an email, please create your own instead of 
forwarding this one!

Contact these 2 officials by 29 September, 2018:

Head of the Judiciary

Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani

c/o Public Relations Office

Number 4, Deadend of 1 Azizi

Above Pasteur Intersection

Vali Asr Street, Tehran, Iran

Salutation: Dear Head of the Judiciary

H.E. Gholamali Khoshroo

Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran???to the United 
Nations

622 Third Avenue, 34th Floor

New York, NY 10017

Phone: 212 687-2020 | Fax: 212 867 7086

Email: iran at un.int

Salutation: Dear Permanent Representative

(source: Amnesty International)