UK court sentences Saudi prince to at least 20 years
Source: Agencies |
October 21, 2010, Thursday
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A BRITISH court sentenced a Saudi prince to at least 20 years in prison yesterday for beating and strangling one of his servants at a top British hotel, in a case that featured days of lurid testimony about their abusive relationship.
Justice David Bean sentenced Prince Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser Al Saud to a life sentence without the possibility of parole for 20 years for the brutal assault at the Landmark Hotel in London on February 15. The case featured CCTV images of the prince throwing a punch at his aide in a hotel elevator - the set piece in a prosecution case that alleged the prince battered his lover in a rage following years of abuse.
"No one in this country is above the law," Bean said. "It would be wrong for me to sentence you either more severely or more leniently because of your membership of the Saudi royal family."
The jury had deliberated just 95 minutes before returning its verdict. The prince was convicted of both murder and a second count of grievous bodily harm with intent.
Prosecutor Jonathan Laidlaw described a flamboyant lifestyle with a dashing prince who lived the luxury life, dining in fine restaurants and receiving erotic massages.
His lawyers attempted before the trial to stop evidence of his homosexuality from being made public.
"This was a deeply abusive relationship which the defendant exploited for sadistic reasons, for his own personal gratification," Laidlaw said. He described the assault leading to the aide's death as being "a really terrible, a really brutal attack."
Jurors rejected a claim by his defense lawyer, John Kelsey-Fry, that the prince was guilty only of manslaughter.
Saudi media has not mentioned the trial, a sign of how embarrassing the case was for the royal family. The prince's grandfather is the half-brother of the current king.
Britain has no prison transfer agreement with Saudi Arabia.
Justice David Bean sentenced Prince Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser Al Saud to a life sentence without the possibility of parole for 20 years for the brutal assault at the Landmark Hotel in London on February 15. The case featured CCTV images of the prince throwing a punch at his aide in a hotel elevator - the set piece in a prosecution case that alleged the prince battered his lover in a rage following years of abuse.
"No one in this country is above the law," Bean said. "It would be wrong for me to sentence you either more severely or more leniently because of your membership of the Saudi royal family."
The jury had deliberated just 95 minutes before returning its verdict. The prince was convicted of both murder and a second count of grievous bodily harm with intent.
Prosecutor Jonathan Laidlaw described a flamboyant lifestyle with a dashing prince who lived the luxury life, dining in fine restaurants and receiving erotic massages.
His lawyers attempted before the trial to stop evidence of his homosexuality from being made public.
"This was a deeply abusive relationship which the defendant exploited for sadistic reasons, for his own personal gratification," Laidlaw said. He described the assault leading to the aide's death as being "a really terrible, a really brutal attack."
Jurors rejected a claim by his defense lawyer, John Kelsey-Fry, that the prince was guilty only of manslaughter.
Saudi media has not mentioned the trial, a sign of how embarrassing the case was for the royal family. The prince's grandfather is the half-brother of the current king.
Britain has no prison transfer agreement with Saudi Arabia.
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