KOZHIKODE: The Kasargod district sessions court has awarded death sentence to K.A. Hamza, 50, the prime accused in the murder of housemaid Safiya, 13. The third accused, Mymoona, 38, wife of Hamza, was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment.
The fourth accused, Hamza’s relative M. Abdulla, 48, was awarded three years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 5,000. Hamza was also slapped with a fine of Rs 10 lakh, of which Rs 8 lakh should be given to Safiya’s family, said judge M.J. Shaktidharan in his verdict.
Hamza was charged with IPC sections 302 (murder), 361 (kidnapping) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence). The second accused, Moidu Haji, the agent who brought Safiya to Hamza’s home, and the fourth accused, assistant sub-inspector at Aadhur station, P.N. Gopalakrishnan, were acquitted as the prosecution failed to prove the charges against them.
Safiya was brought to Hamza’s home at Bovikanam in Kasargod as a maid on June 15, 2005. Later, Hamza took her to Goa, where he had contract work.
Safiya was found dead at Hamza’s flat in Goa on December 22, 2006. Safiya’s father Moidu filed a missing complaint with Aadhur police and the case was handed over to the Crime Branch in 2007 after an action committee went on strike.
Later, the CB team, headed by DySP K.V. Santhosh dug out Safiya’s body from the Mallorca dam site in Goa. The body was cut into pieces and buried in plastic bags. As there was no witness, the case was proved with scientific evidence.
