RIYADH, 23 April 2008 — Judges presiding over the retrial of two members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice charged with the murder of a bootlegger in May last year issued a court order yesterday summoning a police officer and a commission member, who took part in the raid to attend court. “The two remaining witnesses told judges that they would not attend the trial without a court order,” said Yahya Al-Huraisi, the attorney representing the family of the deceased, Salman Al-Huraisi, 28.
Yahya said the two men are expected to provide details of what happened during the raid, adding that the defendants, A.A. and M.A., attended yesterday’s hearing without their attorney.
Investigators from the General Investigation and Prosecution Board held the two men responsible for the death after months of investigations, which included collating testimonies from 18 commission members who participated in the raid and an autopsy report stating that Salman, who worked as a security guard, died as a result of a blow to the head, which fractured his skull.
The Cassation Court, which is tasked with reviewing lower court rulings, ordered a retrial after judges at the General Court reached a not-guilty verdict in November last year. The court rejected the ruling after identifying several errors, including judges’ failure to hear eyewitness testimonies.
At the start of the retrial two weeks ago, eight commission members who took part in the raid changed their testimonies by denying that the two defendants had participated in the raid and could, therefore, not be held responsible.
The commission members also told judges that prosecutors had pressured them to give false testimonies. However, a spokesman for the General Investigation and Prosecution Authority denied this.
“Under a royal decree, we are not allowed to pressure or torture any person in an investigation to get information,” the spokesperson told a local newspaper.
Alcohol and drugs were found when commission members raided the Al-Huraisi family home in Riyadh last year. Salman was arrested along with eight members of his family and taken to a commission center where commission members allegedly beat him to death. Following the death, the Governorate of Riyadh ordered that those involved in the raid be arrested for investigation.
Members of the Al-Huraisi family were subsequently charged for concealing information and possession of drugs.
