A 23-year-old Tunisian man has pleaded guilty to killing an Indian-origin student named Sabita Thanwani in London in March 2022 after he was charged with manslaughter days after the incident.
The accused Maher Maaroufe confessed to the murder of the 19-year-old Thanwani in her student accommodation during a hearing at the Old Bailey court in London, pleading guilty to manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility. He will be sentenced in September, PTI reported.
Thanwani was found dead with a cut to her throat on March 19, 2022. Court reports revealed that prior to the murder, Thanwani was in a relationship with Maaroufe and both of them were at the student accommodation when screams and various noises from the room were heard by a neighbour, according to the prosecution.
Maaroufe left the building before the police arrived and was seen by officers wearing a balaclava. Thanwani's cause of death was described as a sharp force trauma to the neck in a post-mortem examination. An urgent manhunt was issued against Maaroufe by the Metropolitan police and he was charged with manslaughter days after the incident.
The wanted suspect was eventually arrested by officers on Sunday around the same area of Clerkenwell where the victim’s body was discovered a day before.
Thanwani's family had described her as an 'angel' with a 'radiant smile and incredible heart' after the murder.
“Sabita was the most caring and loving person we have ever known. She inspired us every day of her precious 19 years of life. Her mission was to help everyone. She was studying psychology at City University to make this happen. Her whole life was ahead of her, a life where her radiant smile and incredible heart could only spread warmth and kindness,” said Thanwani's family at the time of her death.
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