London court convicts Lebanese man 11 years after roommates killing

25 August 2011

BEIRUT: A Lebanese man was convicted of murder Wednesday in London, 11 years after he killed his roommate, Moroccan-born Fatima Kama, in London in 1999, The Daily Mail reported Wednesday.

Yousef Wahid, 41, murdered Kama in their London apartment a day before she was set to fly to her family in Montreal, Canada.

On the evening of the murder, airport footage caught Wahid boarding the Heathrow Express with a large suitcase carrying Kama’s body that he dumped in a car park. Wahid then shaved his moustache and traveled to Lebanon.

Shortly after, British detectives traveled to Lebanon in an attempt to arrest Wahid. The law-enforcement officers could not follow through with their mission as Lebanon and the United Kingdom have not signed bilateral agreements that would allow the extradition of suspects.

They later tracked him down and found Wahid living in Bahrain. Living with a wife and two children under a different name, Wahid was arrested and extradited to London to face trial.

Wahid, who pleaded not guilty and insists he did not murder Kama, faces up to 30 years in prison.

“I did not murder Fatima Kama, that’s all I can say,” Wahid said after the jury found him guilty of the murder.