Rola El-Halabi. Photo / AP
The stepfather of an undefeated female boxer has been jailed for six years for repeatedly shooting the woman in a dressing room as she was preparing for a title fight.
German fighter Rola El-Halabi was shot in the hand, knee and feet by 44-year-old Hicham El-Halabi, who had been her manager, as she was awaiting a bout with Irma Balijagic Adler of Bosnia for the vacant IBF lightweight title in Berlin.
A Berlin court said Monday that Hicham El-Halabi deliberately shot the then-25-year-old fighter on April 1 to "prevent her from continuing her boxing career.'' Her injuries were not life-threatening.
Two security guards were also shot before the bout. The court said he also assaulted El-Halabi's current fiance in December 2010.
Hicham El-Halabi was found guilty of two counts of grievous bodily harm with a weapon and another of attempted aggravated assault and intentional injury.
Rola El-Halabi won the WIBF and WIBA world titles in 2009. She had an 11-0 record with six KOs.
The judge said that the defendant was unable to deal with his stepdaughter living her own life, according to the dapd news agency. When she began a relationship with her finance, it was as if his "daughter slipped out of his hands.''
"When I had problems I could talk with him about anything, except when it was about boys,'' Rola El-Halabi said. "That was taboo.''
The judge added that the gunman's idea to leave his stepdaughter a cripple looked "planned for months'' and that he considered himself "the maker of a world champion.''
El-Halabi fought back tears as she heard the verdict.
"It is the penance for a cowardly act,'' said her lawyer, Manfred Gnjidic.
- AP
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