Sabau, of Romanian descent, claimed to be dealing with racism in the workplace. After his dismissal in December 2021, he returned to the security company in Tarragona, Catalonia, where he held hostage and shot at his former colleagues. The police soon arrived and were able to arrest him. Later it turned out that a former colleague had died and that three others had been injured. The police had also fired on Sabau, causing permanent damage to his spinal cord.
That damage led to a leg amputation and partial paralysis, after which Sabau requested euthanasia. Despite being suspected of murder, the judge authorized euthanasia. The next of kin demanded that this not go ahead.
“It was not about preventing euthanasia, but we did want the victims to receive a fair trial,” their lawyer José Natonio Bitos said, according to the Spanish daily El País. Since June 2021, euthanasia has been possible in Spain, apparently also for murder suspects.
