The Grand Criminal Court handed down a seven-year sentence to two defendants who severely burned a young man by pouring gasoline on him, suspecting he had stolen one of their cell phones.

 

In a public session, the court convicted the defendants of arson under Article 368/1 of the Penal Code and assault. Based on Article 57/1, the harsher penalty for arson was applied.

 

The court determined that the defendants did not intend to kill the victim. Evidence showed that one defendant threatened the victim to return the allegedly stolen phone. The victim himself confirmed that he had been accused of the theft.

 

The court highlighted that the gasoline used was a minimal quantity costing just half a dinar, insufficient to cause fatal harm. Testimony revealed that when one defendant kicked a candle, it was directed toward the carpet, not the victim, leading to an accidental fire.

 

Further, one defendant's actions—accompanying the victim in the ambulance and assisting at the hospital—indicated no intent to kill. The court noted that if the defendants had intended murder, they could have acted differently after extinguishing the flames.