Man gets 5 years in jail for killing son

Saudi Gazette report ABHA — A Saudi man who was convicted of killing his son a few months ago at his home in Khamis Mushayt was sentenced to five years in prison, Al-Madina newspaper reported on Sunday. According to the prosecution, the man, in his 50s, tried to wake his son up for the Asr prayer but the son had allegedly retorted with foul words, which terribly upset the father. According to the investigations, the angry father held his son, who was in his 30s, by his neck with his shumagh (head dress). The father claimed that his not only did call him names but asked him to leave the room. The investigators said the father suspected that his son was not in a normal state so he pulled him with the shumagh still around his neck to bring him closer to check if he smelled of alcohol. After sometime, the son stopped resisting, and the father started doubting his son had died. He called the Red Crescent paramedics who arrived quickly at the house but was too late to save the young man. The father gave himself in to the police, which handed over the case to the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution (BIP). The public prosecutor charged the father with first degree murder and called for capital punishment but the judge handed him five years in jail. According to the ruling, both the father and the prosecutor can appeal the verdict within 30 days. The father was working in one of the security sectors and was commonly believed to be a good man.