Trial For Tinley Man Accused Of Murdering Wife In 2012 To Begin

TINLEY PARK, IL — After more than five years, a Tinley Park man is expected to go on trial for the murder of his wife this week. Bahaa Sam, 52, is accused of beating Nermeen Gamal Sam, 38, with a weightlifting curling bar in 2012 as the couple's 4-year-old son watched.

Jury selection in the trial is set for Monday. If Sam is convicted, he could face up to 60 years in prison. Following a psychological evaluation in 2013, a Will County judge ruled that Sam was mentally fit to stand trial.

A Tinley Park public works employee called 911 after discovering Nermeen Sam's body next to a tree outside the couple's home in the 19700 block of Silverside Drive the morning of Dec. 19, 2012, police said at the time. According to Will County prosecutors, the woman was face down in the grass, covered in blood, when officers arrived outside the home in the Brookside Glen subdivision. An autopsy report by the Will County Coroner's Office stated she was hit in the head more than 10 times.

As officers investigated the scene and entered the couple's home, they encountered one of the Sams' four children, face and clothing allegedly covered in blood splatters.

More Patch Coverage:

• Police: Husband Charged With Murder in Wife's Death in Brookside Glen
  
• Son to Cops: 'Daddy Killed My Mommy'
  
• Tinley Park Man Charged With Beating Wife to Death Pleads Not Guilty
  
• Alleged Tinley Park Wife-Killer Bahaa Sam Found Fit to Stand Trial
  
• Judge Allows Alleged Tinley Park Wife-Killer Sam to Get Jail Visit From Priest

"Daddy killed my mommy," the 4-year-old boy allegedly told police, according to prosecutors.

Police also found Bahaa Sam at the home, with blood allegedly on his clothing and body, prosecutors said. He later would tell police that the incident began after the couple had been fighting over the fact he was unemployed.

Bahaa Sam had faced previous domestic abuse charge before the 2012 incident. In June of that year, Bahaa Sam was charged with misdemeanor domestic battery, which was reduced to battery, according to Will County Circuit Court records. Nermeen Sam also filed an emergency protective order against her husband at that time. But the order was dropped a month later, and the domestic battery charge was reduced.

Bahaa Sam also was charged with misdemeanor domestic battery and resisting a police officer in October 2005, according to court records. He was found not guilty on the domestic battery charge and guilty on the charge of resisting an officer, court records state.

Bahaa Sam (Photo via Will County Sheriff's Office)