A DOCTOR CHARGED with the murder of her three-year-old son in Dublin was unable to attend court for a third time today on illness grounds.
Maha Al-Adheem, a GP aged 42, was due to face her fourth scheduled appearance at Dublin District Court having been remanded in custody at her first hearing on 13 July this year.
She was too sick to be brought to court on two later dates.
Judge Alan Mitchell noted today that the case had been adjourned for four weeks and he had been furnished with a certificate explaining why she could not be brought to court. The defence had seen the certificate, with the judge giving it to the investigating garda Detective Sergeant Brendan O’Halloran.
Her solicitor, Richard Young, said there was consent to the case being adjourned for another four weeks. Judge Mitchell said the case can be put back for four weeks “on illness grounds”.
She is to remain in police custody until 25 September. “It will be a matter for the State to organise for the accused to be brought before the court unless there are medical reasons,” he said.
The body of Omar Omran, who was stabbed to death, was found when gardaí and an ambulance crew were called to his home at Riverside Apartments in Kimmage, at about 7pm on 10 July.
After a forced entry, the child was found in his bedroom. He was buried at the Islamic section of Newcastle Cemetery, Co Dublin, following prayers at Clonskeagh mosque.
Following the discovery of her son’s body, Al-Adheem, a doctor from Iraq who had been living in Ireland since 2010, was detained at Crumlin Garda Station under Section Four of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.
At her first hearing, O’Halloran had told the court that Al-Adheem was arrested at 12.30am on 13 July for the offence of murder contrary to common law. He had said she made no reply.
O’Halloran had said he cautioned her about 45 minutes later and charged her. He had told the court she was given a true copy of the charge and in reply to the charge she said, “Yes it was my knife, yes it was my hand, it was not me, it was the power.”
The defendant sat motionless during that brief hearing and did not address court.
The district court cannot grant bail in a murder case. An application instead has to be made in the High Court.
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