Foreign national charged with manslaughter in connection with death of wife

AMMAN — The Criminal Court prosecutor on Tuesday charged a foreign national with manslaughter in connection with the alleged murder of his wife, also a foreign national, following a domestic dispute in Amman earlier this week, official sources said.

The victim was allegedly strangled to death by the suspect on Sunday at their apartment in Marka, a senior judicial source close to the investigations told The Jordan Times.

"The suspect then swallowed around 40 pills of medication in an attempt to take his own life," the senior judicial source added.

On Monday, the source maintained, the suspect told investigators that "he woke up to discover that he was still alive, so he jumped from the third floor".

“The suspect was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment, where he remains in stable condition,” the senior judicial source said.

In his initial testimony to Criminal Court Prosecutor Mahmoud Smadi, the suspect claimed that he “engaged in a fierce argument with his wife and ended up strangling her with his hands,” according to the senior judicial source.

“The victim was in Jordan for around six months working as a domestic helper, and her husband arrived in early April to work as a tailor,” the senior judicial source said.

A team of physicians from the National Institute of Forensic Medicine performed an autopsy on the victim and concluded that she died from manual strangulation, a second official source told The Jordan Times.

Smadi was able to question the suspect on Tuesday after the suspect regained consciousness, and charged him with manslaughter, the second official source added.

Investigations in the case are ongoing, according to the second official source.

"Smadi is expected to hear more witnesses in the case before completing the investigation," the second source added.

Smadi ordered the suspect detained for 15 days pending further investigation.