Indonesian student faces death in Cairo

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

An Indonesian student accused of murdering four members of a Malaysian family in Cairo earlier this year will likely face the death sentence.

Indonesian Ambassador to Egypt Bachtiar Aly said on Saturday the student, Ali Darman, was likely to go on death row after relatives of the deceased refused to pardon him.

Under Egyptian law, capital punishment can be avoided if the relatives of a victim agree to forgive the murderer.

Bachtiar said the Indonesian Embassy had made a series of diplomatic overtures to have Ali's punishment reduced to life imprisonment.

"We have asked Malaysian officials to arrange a meeting between us and the victims' relatives, but the family refused to respond," Bachtiar told Antara.

Ali, a student of a Sharia law university, is currently in prosecutors' custody and will stand trial early next year for murder and armed robbery.

He was accused of killing university colleague, Muhammad Zaki Ayyub, 27, his wife, Nur Hayati Bokhari, 27 and their two children Maryam, 7, and Muaz, 3, last October.

Police said the murder followed a robbery as some US$6,800 in cash belonging to Ayyub was stolen. Ali had earlier confessed to committing the crimes.

The Indonesian, who owned a restaurant in Cairo, was named the only suspect in the killing spree.

One of Ayyub's relatives, Muhammad Syukri, said there would be no reconciliatory talks with Ali.

"We will not grant the pardon, although we understand that they (Ali's side) have tried to meet us. It is impossible for us to forgive him," Syukri said as quoted by Antara on Friday.

Ali had appeared in a hearing early this month, but the court gave the Indonesian government a chance to seek a pardon from Ayyub's relatives.

The embassy has hired a Egyptian lawyer to represent Ali.