HARRISBURG, PA — A Lebanon County jury has convicted a New York man of first-degree murder for killing his daughter in Pennsylvania and transporting her body to Staten Island in an effort to conceal the crime, Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday announced Friday.
Jurors found 57-year-old Kabary Salem guilty after a week-long trial detailing the 2019 death of his daughter, Ola Salem. He faces a mandatory life sentence when he returns to court for sentencing on November 26.
Prosecutors said Salem beat and strangled his daughter to death in Palmyra before driving her body to a park in Staten Island, where it was later discovered. New York City police handled the initial investigation after a passerby found the victim’s body. An autopsy determined her cause of death was strangulation and blunt force trauma.
“The facts in this case show the defendant did the unthinkable — he murdered his own daughter, then tried to get away with it by disposing of her body,” Attorney General Sunday said in a statement. “I cannot fathom a series of criminal acts more despicable, senseless, and purely evil. I commend the jury for their careful attention to the evidence and applaud our prosecutors and the investigators for their relentless pursuit of justice.”
During the trial, prosecutors presented surveillance footage, GPS data, and forensic evidence linking Salem to the killing and subsequent disposal of the body. Investigators testified that DNA matching Salem was found under the victim’s fingernails and that a blue shovel similar to one he had been seen buying at a Lowe’s store was recovered near the scene.
Authorities said that days after speaking with police, Salem fled the United States and traveled to the Middle East. He was captured in December 2020 and extradited to Pennsylvania to face charges.
The case was prosecuted by Chief Deputy Attorney General Brian Zarallo and Senior Deputy Attorney General Lauren Eichelberger, with investigative assistance from the New York City Police Department.
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