Abdelmalek Benbara, an Algerian parliament member whose decomposing body was found in Paris last week, was stabbed to death shortly before his disappearance three weeks ago, according to the results of the autopsy released Friday.
Benbara's corpse, which was found with the feet bound in the boot of his car near the Arc de Triumph, bore signs of beating to the face and throat and three knife wounds to the chest, officials said, cited by AFP.
Police officials said they thought the murder was probably a personal issue, and that a political connection seemed unlikely.
Benbara, whose seat in the Algerian parliament was as a representative of members of the country's large expatriate community in France, had a home in the French town of Saint-Chamond as well as an apartment in Paris.
His disappearance was reported to police early January after he failed to meet an appointment in Paris with a friend. Benbara's wife and the friend have both been questioned.
Police said that Benbara also had a child by another woman - a local councilor in Paris' Nanterre suburb, who was one of eight killed in March when a gunman burst into a council meeting. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
