Tsecond day of the assize trial was completely occupied by the testimony of the investigators. They explained the research with the help of a PowerPoint presentation. The facts happened on September 7, 2022 around 6:30 PM. Khadouj was then on her way home with her sister and mother after an afternoon of shopping. They were approached from behind in the Jan Davidlei by Allal who planted a large chef’s knife in his wife’s back. The couple had been living apart for three months at the time after an argument involving mutual beatings. Khadouj had told him she wanted a divorce.
Bystanders came to the aid of the seriously injured victim and started resuscitation, which was later taken over by the emergency services. They were unable to save the woman. The assize jury was shown photos of how Khadouj was found and the emergency calls to the emergency services were played in the assize room.
The accused had walked away after the stabbing. He took off his jacket and threw it away together with the knife in the Max Roossenstraat. He left his bucket hat on a parked car. Allal then went to the police station on Sint-Bernardsesteenweg.
“The accused said in broken Dutch ‘I, I, I, Jan Davidlei, I done’. He indicated that he had been terrorized by his wife for twenty years and that he was treated worse than a dog. He also said that his wife had set a fire that killed their daughter and that it had gone without consequences. He did not think that was possible,” an investigator testified.
Deviating statements
During the investigation, he was interrogated seven times by the local police. What he then stated differed on some points from what he said during his interrogation on the first day of the trial. On Friday he indicated that he had only made the decision to kill Khadouj three days before the facts. He told investigators that the idea to kill her began to take shape after he had to leave the house in June. He told investigators that he had bought a bicycle, a knife and a fishing hat especially for the facts. Last Friday he said that the purchase of the bicycle had nothing to do with the facts and that he had already purchased a knife set weeks before because he was afraid of his in-laws. He had deliberately bought the hat to disguise himself.
The reasons he gave why Khadouj had to die remained the same. He held her responsible for the accidental house fire in 1998 that killed their five-year-old daughter and left her sister maimed for life. Four years later, a fire broke out again. Khadouj was the last to leave the house and Allal believes she started the fire. “That fire did raise some questions and a judicial investigation followed. Khadouj and Allal were in custody for two to three weeks. They were ultimately not convicted because that fire also appeared to be accidental,” an investigator explained.
Domestic violence
In addition to the fires, Allal also accused his wife of challenging him in the hope that he would hit her so that she could report the incident to the police. “We found two reports of domestic violence. In 2007, Khadouj reported beatings and stampings by her husband. She said that the violence had been going on for two years. A month later she withdrew her statement and told the police that they had reconciled. Later this turned out to be incorrect, because the accused lived elsewhere for a year and a half.”
In 2022, three months before the facts, both Khadouj and Allal were injured during an argument. Khadouj refused any cooperation with police and said everything was fine. Allal was willing to live with family. “Reports of domestic violence are always taken seriously, but if people do not want to cooperate, it becomes difficult,” said an investigator.
Other reasons given by the accused as to why Khadouj had to die were his suspicion that she took money from him and the fact that he was no longer allowed to be an informal caregiver for his disabled daughter.
Eyewitnesses to the fatal stabbing and family members will testify on Tuesday.