Case of slain police officers in Maan referred to State Security Court

AMMAN — On Tuesday, a case involving a group of suspects who allegedly killed four police officers in the southern governorate of Maan in December was referred to the State Security Court (SSC) by the court’s prosecution office. 

SSC General Prosecutor Judge Abdullah Fawaz concluded his investigation, and referred the case to the court to begin trial, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The agency did not list the number of suspects who will stand trial, but the Public Security Directorate (PSD) announced in December that one suspect was killed and nine other men were arrested following the killings.

Three of the four slain officers were killed on December 19 during a raid on the hideout of the suspected killers of Colonel Abdulrazzaq Al Dalabeeh, who was killed a few days earlier during riots in Maan over fuel price hikes.

The PSD at the time announced that Captain Ghaith Rahahleh, Second Lieutenant Mutaz Najada and Corporal Ibrahim Shaqarin were killed during the raid.

Five other police officers were injured during the same raid.

Colonel Dalabeeh, who was the deputy director of the Maan Police Directorate, was shot in the head while handling riots in the Al Husseinieh region, 60km north of Maan, on December 16. During the riots, two other officers were injured and were taken to the hospital.

Dalabeeh’s suspected killer was reportedly a follower of the extremist and radical takfiri ideology. The suspect was killed, and eight others were arrested during the raid, the PSD announced in December.

The suspect killed in the Husseinieh raid was born in 2002. One of his brothers was killed in Syria five years ago, and the other is currently imprisoned on terrorism-related charges, according to Al Mamlaka TV.

The suspects were found in possession of automatic weapons and a large amount of ammunition, according  to the PSD.   

The PSD, in  a statement, said that a special security force conducted a raid on a terrorist cell in Al Husseinieh after investigations uncovered a group of brothers who were proponents of the takfiri ideology.

As the police were heading to the cell, one of the suspects started shooting at the force with an automatic weapon, which required security personnel to apply the rules of engagement.

Evidence from the crime scene indicated that most members of the cell embraced the extremist ideology.