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Father of murdered Norwegian student in London is determined to get justice 13 years after her murder (Photo: PA)
The father of a Norwegian student murdered 13 years ago warned the suspect that he could not hide forever, despite his family’s wealth.
69-year-old Petter Magnussen has insisted that the son of billionaire Farouk Abdulhaq from Yemen should return to Britain to stand trial in the murder case of Martina Vic Magnussen.
He said he was determined that his family would receive a sentence in memory of the 23-year-old economics student, which would have far-reaching implications for international law.
Speaking to Metro.co.uk ahead of the anniversary of his daughter’s death on Sunday, Mr Magnussen also expressed fears that a harsher form of justice would be applied to Abdulhak, denying the family the ethical outcome his daughter would have wanted.
Ms Magnussen’s body was found half-naked and surrounded by debris in the basement of Abdulhaq’s home in Westminster, London. She was raped and strangled.
Within hours, Playboy fled to Egypt and then to Yemen, where he is believed to be in the capital Sana’a, which was taken by the Houthi movement in 2014.
The Magnussen family is trying to exert international political pressure and is also appealing to the people of Houthi and Yemen, a country that has no extradition treaty with Britain.
Police pay tribute to the determination of the family of Martina Vic Magnussen, who was murdered in March 2008 (Met Police photo).
Mr Magnussen said: The suspect has been residing in Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen for 13 years. The rape and murder of a woman is the worst crime known to man, and we know that the ideological and legal platform of the Houthis is justice and the fight against corruption.
It is very, very strange that they have not come forward on this platform, and the only solution is the old idea of trading the money.
This is a classic example of how wealth puts someone outside the law, this is a much bigger issue than my family’s fight for justice.
My struggle has been to try to motivate all the right sources, forces, people, races, or whatever you see, to reinforce this core value and respond to the injustice that governs this business. All we want as a family is for him to return to England.
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Then we’ll give Martine the fundamental right we feel is absolutely necessary in this case. And we’ll get there.
Magnussen celebrated the end of her final exams with friends at Maddox Nightclub in Mayfair and attended on the 14th. March 2008 around 2 o’clock, a taxi with Abdulhak.
The Metropolitan Police launched an investigation after his friends reported him missing the next day.
The 16th. In March, detectives went to a Great Portland Street residence where Abdulhak lived and discovered his body in a padlocked basement. Attempts were made to hide them under the rubble.
The autopsy revealed that the cause of death was whiplash, and it was determined that she had been raped. The wrongful death sentence was handed down on the 24th. November 2010 at Westminster Coroner’s Court.
Farooq Abdulhaq is believed to have travelled to Yemen hours after the murder of Martina Vic Magnussen in 2008 (Met Police photo).
At the beginning of the case, there were indications that Abdulhak was willing to mediate with the family’s lawyer, Patrick Landewall-Unger, and possibly return to the UK.
A link was made to the mediation, but it was absolutely beyond repair, Magnussen said.
Over the years, we’ve been very close three or four times, and then the suspect pulls out, flinches or whatever, and we start over. It’s very frustrating.
Now let’s hope he takes advantage of this thirteenth birthday to do the only decent thing he can and return to the UK.
Ms. Magnussen, who excelled in her business studies at Regent’s Park Private Business School, is also survived by her mother Christine, her brother Magnus and her sister Matilda.
Stranger Petter Magnussen believes his family will get justice for his daughter, despite the suspect’s refusal to return to the UK (Photo: PA)
Martina was a fairly normal, average girl in many ways, but she had tremendous social skills that set her apart from most people, Magnussen said.
She had a kind, positive and heuristic outlook on life and cared about the welfare of others. These human qualities were evident to all who met them.
At least indirectly, these human traits could have killed her.
Magnussen, who lives on the outskirts of Oslo, believes the conviction in this high-profile case will send a strong message that fugitives cannot hide in other jurisdictions indefinitely.
The family’s efforts to keep the case under wraps include the creation of the Martina Justice Foundation and an active social media campaign aimed at the Yemeni public.
Her father remembers Martine Vic Magnussen as a kind and positive person (Photo: Martine Foundation for Justice).
Martina climbs a Norwegian glacier with her family during a summer vacation at the age of 13 (Photo: Martina Justice Foundation).
Mr Magnussen said: Solving a case of international importance and circumventing the lack of an extradition treaty sends a big message to the world and has implications for other types of serious crimes, such as international drug trafficking.
I assure you we will succeed in the end. We let the suspect know he can run, but he can’t hide.
Abdulhak, who went to school with Ms Magnussen, is wanted by Scotland Yard and is on Interpol’s most wanted list.
Shaher Abdulhak’s father, 34, has an extensive business portfolio that includes oil, real estate, soft drinks, sugar and tourism.
Although Mr Magnussen has a substantial fortune, he believes that the defendant’s room for manoeuvre is diminishing and that he may yet face a harsher form of justice in Yemen.
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My fear is that with the huge support we have in Yemen and beyond, some people will see it as a religious provocation and he will have to look over his shoulder more and more, he said.
Someone can take matters into their own hands in a brutal way.
It would take away the ethical decision I’ve been making all this time, because I want to give it back to Martine so that her memory will contribute something valuable to the international community. ‘
Speaking directly to Abdulhak, Magnussen said: Please have some dignity and show some respect for my family and Martina by returning to the UK and telling the police what happened to her.
The alternative is less freedom, less quality of life, and the possibility of someone administering justice in a much more violent manner.
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Mr Magnussen was speaking a day after police repeated their call and called on the detective investigating the murder to allow Abdulahak to return to the UK to stand trial.
Detective Inspector James Howarth said: For the past 13 years, Martina’s family and police have kept this investigation in the public eye and brought it up many times.
I want to make it clear to Farouk Abdulhak that this issue will not go away.
My team and I will continue to seek justice and take every opportunity to prosecute him and bring him back to the UK. Her detection status will remain, and I will not cease my efforts to get justice for Martina’s family.
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