Islamic militant appeals death sentence in Pearl kidnap-murder

0 Comments | Asian Political News, July 22, 2002

ISLAMABAD, July 19 Kyodo

Lawyers for Sheikh Omar Saeed said Friday they have filed an appeal against his conviction and death sentence for the kidnapping and murder of U.S. journalist Daniel Pearl.

''It is an excellent case for appeal. A two-member bench will hear it, and I hope justice will prevail,'' Abdul Wahid Katpar, lawyer for the British-born Islamic militant, told reporters.

''I am confident that I will win freedom for my client,'' he said after filing the appeal in the Sindh High Court in Karachi.

The appeal petition said Saeed's conviction was ''unwarranted and the sentence awarded to the appellant is illegal.''

An antiterrorism court in Hyderabad on Monday sentenced Saeed to death by hanging and sentenced three co-accused to life imprisonment.

The state prosecutor said Tuesday he has filed an appeal seeking the death sentence for the three co-accused.

Pearl, a reporter of the Wall Street Journal, was kidnapped in Karachi on Jan. 23 and a month later his death was confirmed in a video recording delivered by unknown men to the U.S. consulate there.