Filipino spared from Saudi death row

MANILA, Philippines–A Filipino seafarer jailed in Saudi Arabia for murder was spared from death row after the victim’s family forgave him, Vice President Jejomar Binay said on Wednesday.

Jonard Langamin, however, will still need to raise P2 million in blood money, a form of compensation given by an offender to the family of the victim, before he can be released from detention at the Dammam Reformatory Jail.

Langamin was sentenced to death for killing a fellow overseas Filipino worker, Robertson Mendoza.

He was saved from beheading after the victim’s family signed a “tanazul” or an affidavit of forgiveness.

Binay said he had already asked the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to “expedite the release of blood money” so Langamin could spend Christmas with his family in the Philippines.

“Once the needed amount has been given to the victim’s family, Judge Sheikh Ahmad Najmi Al Otaibe of the Dammam High Court will schedule a marathon hearing for the closure of the public right aspect of the case and eventually decide on Langamin’s immediate deportation,” a statement from the Office of the Vice President said.

Langamin was set to be released in March 2012 after the victim’s father signed a tanazul but it was delayed after the court ruled that it should be Mendoza’s mother, Rosemarie Santiago, who should sign.

It was only in November 3 that the court, headed by Judge Sheikh Ahmad Najmi Al Otaibe accepted the tanazul.

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