The Trongsa District Court sentenced a 30-year-old man from Phuntshothang Gewog under Samdrup Jongkhar to 11 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter. He was found guilty of two counts of battery, criminal attempt to escape from lawful custody and voluntary manslaughter. The court passed the judgment recently.
The convict and the deceased were both working as security personnel with one of the foreign construction companies of the 720MW Mangdechhu Hydro Power Project’s Dam site. The deceased who was 21 years old at the time of his death was from Samchhoeling under Draagteng Gewog in Trongsa.
According to the judgment, on the night of 27th September last year, the convict battered two co-workers before stabbing the deceased to death with a 21-centimetre long kitchen knife. Both were under the influence of alcohol and the argument reportedly started over a recharge data package. After the incident, the convict hid on the campus that night and took off the next day in a bus, and was arrested from the Hongtsho checkpoint in Thimphu. And while in custody, he tried to break out on October 15 last year.
The district court, however, passed a concurrent sentence where the convict will be serving all the sentences at the same time. He will have to serve 11 years in prison. Meanwhile, the convict is also asked to pay compensation of Nu 168,232 to the family of the deceased.
Passang, Trongsa
