‘This Monster Got What He Deserved’: Rita Ellul’s Brother Welcomes Murderer’s Life Imprisonment
Rita Ellul’s brother has welcomed the life imprisonment sentence that has been handed out to her murderer Lawrence Abina.
“My family and I are now at peace because he got what he deserved, and this monster can now die in prison,” Joe Ellul wrote on Facebook.
“It won’t get her back but at least justice has been done with my poor sister. From the bottom of my heart, I thank the police for doing their job well, as well as the courts, our lawyers, and everyone else.”
Abina, a 32-year-old Ghanian national, was yesterday sentenced to life in prison after a jury found him guilty of murdering Ellul, who was his partner, in Għajnsielem in 2022.
Judge Natasha Galea Sciberras said the heinous and callous nature of the crime, in which Abina strangled Ellul to death while she was asleep before disturbing the crime scene to make it seem as though she had died a natural death, meant he deserved the maximum possible punishment.
By Maltese law, life imprisonment literally means spending the rest of your life in prison.
It is an extremely rare sentence, and as of 2023, only 13 prisoners – nine Maltese and four foreigners – were serving life sentences.
Cover photo: From left: Joe Ellul, Rita Ellul, Lawrence Abina
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