The trial concerning the murder of Diana Santos, a 40-year-old Portuguese woman whose body was dismembered in Luxembourg, concluded this Friday. The Luxembourg public prosecutor’s office has demanded the maximum penalty for the main suspect, though not the only one, involved in the murder: life imprisonment.
Said Banhakeia took the defendant’s seat during the trial, which lasted two weeks. On two different occasions, the 51-year-old Moroccan claimed before the judge that he did not kill Diana Santos. He stated he “merely” assisted his nephew Gibran, allegedly the woman’s husband through an arranged marriage, in dismembering the woman and concealing the body.
The real killer, he argued, is Gibran.
Prosecution Demands Life Sentence Without Parole
This Friday, during the fourth and final session of the trial, in the prosecution’s closing statements, the prosecutor recalled the testimony of the psychiatrist in court. The professional described Said as a person “without empathy”, despite no signs of any mental illness, and as “manipulative”.
During the ninety-minute intervention, the prosecutor described the relationship between Said and Diana as “violent”, asserting that the Moroccan wanted Diana to end her relationship with her then-boyfriend, Pedro, supposedly having spoken with both to terminate the relationship.
The prosecution contended that Said had a jealous outburst for being “very possessive”, leading him to commit the crime: “Said had a clear, well-defined motive. For him, Diana’s relationship with Pedro was unbearable.”
Throughout the trial, Said maintained that Gibran was the one who killed Diana, but the prosecutor noted that the situation was different, as the younger man was involved with another woman.
The theory that Gibran killed Diana over a money dispute due to the arranged marriage was only mentioned by Said.
“It was Said who killed Diana,” concluded the prosecutor, emphasizing that it was “all organized, premeditated, and well-planned.”
Considering the crimes of murder and mutilation of a corpse, the public prosecutor requested the panel of judges to sentence Said to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole – the maximum penalty in Luxembourg.
Defense Maintains Gibran Killed Diana and Said Helped Conceal the Crime
In contrast, the defense, speaking for two hours, argued that this “was not a crime of passion.” Both Diana and Said had multiple relationships, stated the lawyer, asserting that if jealousy had motivated the crime, the targets would have been the men involved with Diana, not her.
Regarding the arranged marriage, the lawyer confirmed that Diana and Gibran indeed married on July 14, 2022, in exchange for a substantial amount of money so the Moroccan could obtain documents to reside in the country.
“The marriage was of absolute and exclusive interest to Gibran,” highlighted the lawyer, asserting that Said had no connection to the agreement.
The defense maintained that the true murderer is Gibran and that, if not, the man would not have fled to Morocco “to seek protection.” The defense even argued that if Gibran were extradited to Luxembourg, he would confess to the crimes.
The sentence from the trial will be announced only next year, on February 5.
It is recalled that the body of Diana Santos was found dismembered and decapitated in an abandoned building in Mont-Saint-Martin, on the French border, on September 19, 2022. A month and a half later, another part of the Portuguese woman’s body was found in Temmels, on the German border, on November 1 of the same year. Diana is believed to have been murdered in the house where she lived with Gibran.
Diana Santos lived in Luxembourg for several years. The body was found dismembered, without a head, and identified only by its tattoos.
Notícias ao Minuto | 10:49 – 04/10/2022
