Gunman euthanized before trial in Spain

WALL – Former security company employee, who was shot and paralyzed multiple times by the police after he shot his colleagues in Spain, was euthanized in prison before his trial began. Marin Eugen Sabau, 46, shot and wounded three colleagues and a police officer in an attack on his former security company in December.

During the attack in the city of Tarragona, in northeastern Spain, Sabau also shot a police officer as he fled the scene after shooting at his colleagues. Sabau, originally from Romania, then barricaded himself in a house full of arsenals.

Police fired several times after breaking into Sabau’s building, according to the Romanian-based Observator news site. Sabau suffered spinal cord paralysis and one of his legs was amputated. After her chronic pain, Sabau requested euthanasia. A court in Tarragona evaluated Sabau’s state of health, despite the objections of the victims, and upheld the request, which it found was in line with the human rights framework.

Adults with persistent and serious health problems that cause “unbearable pain” can be voluntarily euthanized under a law that went into effect last year in Spain. But the lawyer for the police officer injured in the attack said the court had “wasted an opportunity to hold a hearing and make a decision about an unprecedented event”. Speaking to the Spanish-based newspaper El Pais, Lawyer Jose Natonio Bitos said, “Our goal was not to prevent euthanasia, but we wanted a fair trial of the people who caused the victimization in the incident.” Prison officials and Sabau’s lawyer did not comment on the matter. (BBC Turkish)