OFW in Kuwait found in freezer case update: suspect found guilty

Suspect for OFW in Kuwait found in freezer guilty
Justice served. Suspect for OFW in Kuwait found in freezer has been found guilty. (Image from ABS-CBN News)

The employer/suspect for killing OFW in Kuwait found in freezer was found guilty of murder, the Department of Foreign Affairs announced Monday.

The DFA posted on their official Twitter account the news:

“The DFA-Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs reports that the Syrian District Criminal Court found Mouna Ali Hassoun, accused in the Joana Demafelis case, guilty of murder. DFA will continue to provide legal assistance to the family until justice is served.”

The now-convicted employer Mouna Ali Hassoun was taken to custody in Syria last year. The verdict was also given there. Her Lebanese husband, Nader Essam Assaf, was in Lebanon, faces the murder charge in Lebanon.

OFW in Kuwait found in freezer

On February 2018, the body of a Filipina OFW was found inside a freezer in an abandoned apartment in Kuwait. The victim was identified as Joanna Demafelis.

Philippine Ambassador to Kuwait Renato Pedro Villa said that Demafelis suffered trauma, internal bleeding, and broken ribs from the hands of her employers, Mouna Ali Hassoun and Nader Essam Assaf.

“Ang mayroon lang tayo ay ‘yung binanggit, verbally, nung Kuwaiti forensics doctor na ang sanhi ng pagkamatay ng ating kababayan ay several contusions, trauma, internal bleeding, broken ribs at sinabi rin niya na ‘yung pagmamaltrato sa kaniya (Demafelis) ay hindi lang nangyari ng isang beses but continuous or several times na ginawa sa kaniya,” Villa said.

(The report we have verbally, from the Kuwaiti forensics doctor, our fellow Filipino’s cause of death are several contusions, trauma, internal bleeding, broken ribs. They also said the maltreatment towards her (Demafelis) did only happen once, but continuous or several times.)

Joanna Demafelis left Iloilo to work as a domestic helper in Kuwait in 2014. However, she went missing in 2016. President Rodrigo Duterte declared deployment of Filipinos to the Gulf state after Demafelis’ dead body was discovered.

Also read:Kuwaiti charged over death of maid found violated with cucumber, Milwaukee Public School teacher accused of sexually assaulting Filipina