S Sabaqat
Srinagar, Dec 16: A local court here today recorded statement of third prosecution witness, Hafeeza Begum, wife of Abdul Rahim, the owner of the houseboat where the Dutchman allegedly murdered a British woman here in April this year.
The Dutchman, Richard de Wit, was present before the court of Principal District and Sessions Judge Srinagar, Mohammad Shafi Khan where statement were recorded in the court. As soon as the hearing in the case started, Delhi-based lawyer Shilpi Jain, appearing for the accused, cross- examined Hafeeza Begum at length to probe the matter. Pertinently the court has directed framing of charges against the 46-year old Dutch, under section 302 for which maximum sentence is either death or life imprisonment on July 11.
As per sequence of events, on June 3, Police had filed the charge-sheet before a local court here against the Dutch national for murdering 24-year-old British tourist-Sara Elizabeth Rose, daughter of Victor Nojail Rose of Royas, UK inside the houseboat on the Dal Lake on April 6. Thereafter Richard was arrested from the main town Qazigund when he was trying to evade his arrest and police after filing a case (FIR No. 40/2013) at Police Station Ram Munshi Bagh, during course of investigation police found him guilty of the crime and accordingly filed the charge sheet.
On June 24, the accused was provided English translated copy of the charge-sheet by the prosecution on the directions by the court after an application was moved by him through his lawyer in which the accused had expressed inability to understand Urdu, in which the charge-sheet and statement of witnesses has been filed before the court. |
