Suspect arrested over brutal beating of two children in Zarqa

AMMAN — Police on Sunday said they arrested a man who allegedly beat up two children in Zarqa with an iron bar, causing their death, official sources said.

The two children, a three-year-old boy and a two-year-old girl, police said.

The two children were reportedly walking in the Halabat area in Zarqa when the attack took place, a senior judicial source said.

Police Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi told The Jordan Times that a suspect was detained shortly after the alleged assault took place.

“Our preliminary investigations indicate that the suspect might be suffering from mental problems and we have referred to the case to the judiciary,” Sartawi said.

The victims were rushed to a nearby hospital where the boy was declared dead on arrival, while the girl died shortly afterwards, the Public Security Department said in a statement.

The blunt object allegedly used in the beatings was seized by police, according to the statement.

The judicial source told The Jordan Times that the Criminal Court prosecutor who was on duty headed to the crime scene to start investigating the incident.

“The Criminal Court prosecutor will question the suspect and, based on his observations, he might refer him to the National Institute of Psychiatric Medicine or charge him with murder and attempted murder,” the judicial source explained.