A Farmington Hills man was sentenced for murdering his mother back in 2017. The judge listened to hours of challenges and objections from Muhammad Altantawi before handing down the sentence of 35-60 years for murder.
Nada Huranieh, 35, was found on the ground outside her Farmington Hills home in August of 2017.
Read: Teen to be tried as adult in murder of his mother, who fell from window of Farmington Hills mansion
Prosecutors say her then-16-year-old son, Altantawi, suffocated her and threw her body out of a second-floor window, then staged the scene to make it look like an accident.
His lawyers argued that he killed his mother because he was upset that she was divorcing his father.
This past March, a jury needed three hours to find Altantawi guilty of first-degree premeditated murder.
Altantawi says he’s innocent, but several outbursts occurred in court on Wednesday (Sept. 21), causing the judge four or more hours to get to the sentencing portion.
“Five years ago, I got arrested for the worst crime imaginable,” said Altantawi.
Altantawi maintained his innocence at his sentencing Wednesday.
“MDOC’s requested sentencing for 40 to 80 years, I don’t care,” Altantawi said.
Altantawi rambled for hours in court as he continued to interject and interrupt the proceedings, so much so that the judge threatened to remove him.
“I want you to be quiet,” said Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Martha Anderson.
The only person that stood in his defense was Altantawi’s father.
“He was and still is a loving, caring human being,” said the father. “He’s still a loving, caring, supportive human being.”
Anderson cut the father’s victim impact statement short as she did not find his remarks appropriate.
“He’s referring to you as a victim,” Anderson said. “You are not the victim here.”
Altantawi’s sister was later removed from court after she was yelling and swearing at the top of her lungs. She returned later and began interrupting her brother, who was representing himself in court.
The prosecuting attorney called Altantawi a skilled liar practiced in the art of deception.
“His mother wasn’t taken away or killed,” said the attorney. “He murdered her.”
Before handing down her sentence, Anderson said she never finds these cases easy but called this crime heinous.
After listening to some of what can be heard in the courtroom, Anderson said that it appears that Altantawi views himself as the victim, not his mother.
Those factors all went into her sentence of 35 to 60 years.
The defendant’s sister said outside the courtroom that she had some remarkable things to say.
