(AFP) A French court on Friday condemned a man who burned his 31-year-old wife alive to life imprisonment, in a case that shocked the country and sparked criticism of police for failing to protect her.
Mounir Boutaa, 48, will have to serve a minimum of 22 years behind bars, after which a sentencing tribunal will decide if he can be released.
“It’s an extremely severe sentence in that he has almost no chance of one day leaving detention,” said Anais Divot, one of his lawyers.
A lawyer for the victim’s family, Julien Plouton, said that “the sentence takes into account the seriousness of the facts and the personality of the accused.”
