A Public Prosecutor has recommended a prison sentence for a man, suspected of leaving his handicapped brother to die.
The 42-year-old man will go to trial in October and could face nine and a half years in prison, if found guilty and if the Public Prosecutor’s recommendation is accepted.
The victim and the accused lived in a farmhouse in Órgiva. The accused cared for his brother, making sure that he took his medication as well as catering for his basic necessities.
When the victim succumbed, the accused allegedly buried him on the border of the small holding and fled to Motril. Nevertheless, he continued to receive an allowance for being his brother’s helper.
As far as the Public Prosecutor is concerned, the accused’s drug addiction is not an extenuating circumstance to be taken into consideration, while on the other hand, the family link between the accused and victim should count against him when a sentence is handed down, if found guilty.
The two brothers lived together since 2014 (following the death of their mother) until the death of the then 38-year-old victim in 2019. There was no contact with any other relative.
The victim was diagnosed from birth with physical and mental anomalies giving him profound intellectual deficiency, with cerebral palsy, as well as epileptic episodes. His was 97% handicapped, unable to communicate verbally, feed himself or look after his own bodily functions.
The farmhouse was completely unsuitable for the victim’s needs both because what type of dwelling it was and its location; i.e., the difficulty accessing it in the case of a medical emergency. Yet despite this, the accused never requested that his brother be taken into care. The dwelling was kept neither clean nor tidy.
The inevitable death of the handicapped man given the circumstances came about on the 25th of February, 2019, which was followed by the brother’s attempt to hide the body. The accused was arrested on the 5th of March with the month’s carer’s allowance already cashed in.
The trial will be held on the 23rd of October.
(News: Orgiva, Alpujarra, Granada, Andalucia)