The Supreme Court extended with 30 days the arrest warrant of Omar Hayssam, against the previous ruling of the lower court, the Court of Appeal, which deemed irrelevant the proofs presented against him by prosecutors.
Saturday morning the judges of the Court of Appeal decided, after a night of deliberation, to terminate Hayssamâs arrest warrant on charges of plotting to kidnap the Romanian journalists in Iraq. This decision would not have resulted in Hayssam walking out free, since he had other two arrest warrants issued on his name for the economic crimes he was charged with.
The evidence was inadmissible because it was collected with breach to the law, the Court ruled.
Lengthy arguments between judges and lawyers came to an end in the Supreme Court, which reversed the decision of the lower court and decided to extend Hayssamâs arrest warrant on kidnapping and terrorism charges. Hayssam will stay for another 30 days in jail while he is investigated for his alleged crimes.
The evidence against Hayssam was inadmissible because the statements against him, from his alleged accomplices arrested in Baghdad, were collected prior to any investigation being officially started against in Romania. Also, Haysamâs lawyers argued that there was no evidence incriminating Hayssam for the kidnapping.
The proceedings of the courts were not public, for national security reasons, the media was told by authorities.
Hayssamâs lawyers contested two of the ruling judges: Margareta Teodorescu, for she ruled a month before on the arrest of Hayssam, and Gheorghe Gherasim, for having been deputy prosecutor general before becoming a judge. The lawyers did not succeed in their attempt to stall the ruling and get another court line-up. The court session proceeded swiftly, with the Supreme Court extending for another 30 days the arrest warrant against Ha
