London/: A Saudi prince, grandson of King
Abdullah charged with battering his aide to death was jailed
for life by a British court with the judge observing "no one
in this country is above the law."
Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser al Saud, 34 was ordered to
serve 20 years by the judge at London`s Old Bailey for the
murder of his aide Bandar Abdulaziz, 32, which had a "sexual
element".
"It is very unusual for a prince to be in the dock on
a murder charge. No one in this country is above the law," as
the judge David Been read out the sentence.
The aide was found beaten and strangled in the
Landmark Hotel, Marylebone on February 15 this year and the
court convicted the prince on charges of beating and
strangling Bandar Abdulallah at the culmination of a lengthy
period of sexual violence.
Saud, whose mother is the daughter of the Saudi
Arabian King had claimed diplomatic immunity at the time of
his arrest and was also found to be carrying a diplomatic
passport.
But, the British Foreign office ruled he had no
diplomatic status when asked by the police.
Prosecutors said, that the prince was high on
champagne and cocktails when he murdered his aide after the
pair had returned to hotel after a Valentine Day`s night out.
The prince had denied murder charges in the court
which was shown footage of the CCTV.
PTI
