Death for Lankan maid for murdering Saudi infant

Mohammed Rasooldeen in Saudi Arabia

SAUDI ARABIA: A Sri Lankan housemaid who had murdered a four month old infant two years ago, was sentenced to death at the High Court in Daw Admi, 250 kms away from the Saudi capital of Riyadh.

Delivering the verdict, Chief Judge of the High Court, Abdullah Abdulaziz Al Rosaimi said the murder has been proved beyond reasonable doubt.

“In addition to the witnesses and circumstantial evidence, the accused had also admitted that she killed her sponsor’s child and even demonstrated in court how she squeezed the infant with the feeding bottle in the baby’s mouth.”

The medical report had also revealed that the maid’s finger prints were found on the infant’s neck.

Rizana Nasik, 19 from Muttur had committed the crime in February 2005 when she was 17 years. She had murdered the infant when she was asked to bottle-feed the baby. According to sources from the Sri Lankan mission in the Kingdom, she had modified her age in the passport to come to the Kingdom.

Embassy sources blamed the job agents in Colombo, who send underage girls for employment here.

“They are immature for the job and such a work at the household needs a lot of patience when dealing with the family members,” the sources added, pointing out that the girl should have been studing in a secondary school since free education is offered by the Government.

However, an embassy official said the mission will lodge a formal appeal against the judgement.

In 2005, Badurnissa, a Lankan housemaid from Kalmunai was executed in Riyadh for murdering her sponsor’s wife.

Last week, two Sri Lankans including a woman and her Indian husband were sentenced to death by a High Court in Jeddah for committing armed robbery and killing an old woman.

xThe convicts were Haleema Nissa Cader, K.M.S. Bandaranaike and Naushad who is Haleema’s husband who broke into a house in Jeddah with five other Sri Lankans who were sentenced to five years rigorous imprisonment with 500 lashes.

The others who received lesser punishment included Singarayar Khalid Wimalada, Abdul Basheer Haniffa, Ameer Jabbar, Rizmiya Haque and Mari Kalan Rose.Masihudeen Inamullah, Consul General at the Sri Lanka Consulate Office in Jeddah said all Sri Lankan convicts were workers who had run away from their workplaces.”

“They must be criminals back home and they want to continue their work in the Kingdom too,” he said thanking the security authorities for apprehending those culprits.

Meanwhile, another eight thieves including four Sri Lankans were arrested for armed robbery in Jeddah. They are in police custody and security officials are conducting the investigations.