Accused in Shafia murders assaulted

The lawyer for the young Montreal man charged with killing four family members says his client was beat up by other inmates.

Lawyer Jean-Claude Dubé tells CJAD News he hasn't spoken to his client yet but prison authorities tell him 18-year-old Hamed Shafia was assaulted by other inmates while they were in the outdoor courtyard in the detention center in Napanee, Ontario.  He was not seriously injured but enough to be taken to the infirmary.

Dubé says there should have been precautions to protect his client considering the circumstances.

"There's so many things that have been published and said concerning Afghan people, honour crimes and all those informations also goes into the jails so that's a lot of information that could get people angry at them," Dubé says.

Dubé says he'll ask for extra protection for his client, such as putting him in a separate wing or a different detention center.

Dubé says Hamed's parents, 56-year-old Mohammed Shafia and 39-year-old Tooba Mohammad Yahya are also the targets of threats and intimidation.
 

The three are accused of murder and conspiracy in connection with the deaths of Hamed's three sisters and Mohammed's first wife.