Man gets 13 years in Nicosia fatal stabbing

A young man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for the death of a Pakistani national, who was killed in a stabbing incident downtown Nicosia back in February.

According to local media, a 22-year-old Palestinian man who was found guilty of manslaughter has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for the death of 24-year-old Ahmed Bin Talib, whose death was captured on video and sparked debate on social media.

Talib was killed on February 23 on Rigenis street in downtown Nicosia, following an altercation described by local police as drug-related.

According to details in the case, two men assaulted Talib in an attempt to steal his phone, with the victim getting stabbed during the incident. He then ran after the perpetrators for some 300 metres until the 22-year-old stopped and turned around, based on security camera footage.

The video showed the Palestinian man saying something to the victim, who then collapsed to the ground where he was later found dead.

Police later found the suspect sleeping in an abandoned building in old Nicosia, where he had a knife that later was determined to be the knife used in the fatal incident. A second suspect from Syria was later caught in the north.

“I didn’t mean to kill him,” the Palestinian man told police officers.

But a panel of criminal judges in Nicosia said the attack could not have been an accident.

“The defendant ought to have known that stabbing someone’s vital organs with a knife could bring about death to the victim, which is exactly what took place, and this shows the total disregard of the accused regarding the outcome of his own action,” the judges said.

The judges also took into consideration the defendant’s clean record as well as the fact that he admitted his actions and had cooperated with law enforcement authorities.

Last month, the case re-emerged in the media after law enforcement authorities went on high alert following a second fatal incident downtown Nicosia involving foreign nationals.

A 21-year-old man from India was killed in June in what was believed to have been a clash over financial disputes.

Police have been told that violent confrontations between foreign nationals often take place between groups in order to settle differences, including issues often stemming from competing networks that deal with employment visa agencies.