Murder accused dad fronts court

March 10, 2009

Article from: Australian Associated Press

LAWYERS for a father charged with murdering his son, whose body was found in an outback mine shaft, will await a psychiatric assessment before deciding how to proceed with the case.

Aliya Zilic made a brief appearance in the Adelaide Magistrates Court today.

His lawyer Bronwen Waldron requested an adjournment to give her time to receive and assess the mental health report.

Mr Zilic, 33, has been charged with murdering his three-year-old son, Imran Zilic, between April 21 and April 24 last year about 25km south of the South Australian opal mining town, Coober Pedy.

Imran's body was found in May last year in a seven metre deep mine shaft.

The boy had been taken by his father on a two-day custody visit from his mother's Perth home on April 20.

Mr Zilic was found in Kununurra, in Western Australia's far north, on May 1 and was held in a Perth hospital on a mental health order before being extradited to South Australia.

He will reappear in the Adelaide Magistrates Court to answer the charge on April 7.

STORY TOOLS


20:04 AEST Fri May 30 2008

Tears fell for a young life tragically lost as an Imam sang verses from the Koran over the grave of three-year-old Imran Zilic, whose body was found at the bottom of a mine shaft in outback South Australia.

The Perth youngster's death was all the more heart-wrenching for his family because his father, Aliya Zilic, has been charged with his murder.

Imran's body was found earlier this month in a seven metre deep mine shaft, 47km south of the opal mining town of Coober Pedy.

His grieving mother, Mirsada Halilovic, was joined by several hundred people mostly from the Bosnian Australian community to which they belong, for a Muslim funeral for her son at Perth's Karrakatta cemetery.

Imam Burhan Selim told those gathered he had been shocked by the little boy's death.

"He was very, very young," Imam Burhan said.

"He was three-years-old. We believe he is sinless."

Imran's small simple wooden coffin was lowered into the grave and laid on its right hand side to face Mecca.

Water was gently poured over the mound as Imam Burhan recited prayers from the Koran.

Men, women and children wiped tears from their eyes and bowed their heads as they stood in a circle around the grave site.

Sajit Smajic, President of the West Australian Bosnian Islamic society, told the mourners Imran would go straight to paradise.

"A young life is gone for nothing," he said.

"The lesson to us is that this little boy is innocent. Maybe he is the lucky one who goes straight to paradise.

A pine wooden board bearing Imran's name was placed at the head of the grave which was then covered in a thick carpet of flowers.

Mr Smajic said the tragedy had united Perth's Bosnian, Croats and Serb communities for the first time since the Balkan wars of the 1990s, and members of all the communities were at the funeral.

Earlier, a brief service was held for Imran at the Mirrabooka Mosque, in Perth's northern suburbs.

His body was brought to Perth from Adelaide on Thursday.

Aliya Zilic, 32, is accused of killing his son near Coober Pedy some time between April 21 and April 24.

He was extradited from Perth to Adelaide on May 14 and has been remanded in custody at a psychiatric facility while he awaits a court hearing on August 1.

The boy had been taken by his father on a two-day custody visit from his mother's Perth home on April 20.

Zilic was found in Kununurra, in West Australia's far north, on May 1 and was held in Perth's Graylands Hospital until his extradition.

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