PHILIPSBURG--The Prosecutor’s Office has filed for appeal in the case of suspect T.T.C.W. (41) who on Wednesday was discharged from prosecution with his pre-trial detention lifted as the Judge in the Court of First Instance did not hold him accountable for the fatal stabbing of a Dominicano man on July 5.
Spokesperson of the Prosecutor’s Office Karola van Nie confirmed on Thursday that the Office had filed for appeal against the Court decision on Wednesday.
Family members of the victim expressed their concerns about the Court verdict and that W. would go free and unpunished, but the Prosecutor’s Office decision to file for appeal means that Wednesday’s Court decision has not become irrevocable.
W. will have to appear in Court again on the same charges and the three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals will be hearing the case anew. The hearing may lead to the Appeals Court confirming Wednesday’s ruling, but the higher Court may also decide to quash the verdict and make a different decision, which may also include punishment.
In dismissing claims that he had acted in self-defence, the Prosecutor’s Office had charged W. with manslaughter and had called for a 12-year prison sentence.
Miguel Garcia Fabian was stabbed 10 times during a fight on A.Th. Illidge Road, in the vicinity of A and A Supply. The tragic incident was the culmination of a long-running conflict between the suspect and other residents in the apartment building where he lives.
W.’s lawyer, attorney Zylena Bary, had called upon the Court to declare the Prosecutor’s case against her client inadmissible.
The Judge of the Court of First Instance found it proven that W. had killed the victim by stabbing him several times in his chest, which constituted manslaughter. The Court stated that the fatal incident was the culmination of a long-running neighbours’ quarrel and concluded that the defendant had responded to an immediate attack, which had caused such severe emotions that he had “extensively” overstepped the boundaries of a proportionate defence.
It was not considered proven that the defendant had acted out of “pure revenge,” as the Prosecutor had put it. The suspect was declared not punishable and was dismissed of all prosecution. It is not yet known when the appeal hearing will be taking place, but presumably before mid-2016.
Prosecutor’s Office to appeal verdict in fatal stabbing case
