Martial arts fighter accused of killing father applying for bail

A man accused of killing his father will be applying for bail, his lawyer told court on Tuesday.

Defence counsel Andrew Stewart said Zaineddin Al Aalak will appear in court on Sept. 15 to schedule a release application.

“We have begun the process of a bail hearing at Court of Queen’s Bench,” Stewart told provincial court Judge John Bascom.

Under the Criminal Code, applications for interim release pending trial for murder suspects can only be heard in the higher court.

Al Aalak appeared briefly before Bascom via closed-circuit TV but did not address the court.

He’s charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of his father, Mohamed, 53, as well as interfering with a dead body.

The younger Al Aalak, 21, was arrested in July, after his father’s body was discovered July 17 at an Okotoks construction site on the D’Arcy Ranch golf course.

Police believe an altercation at Al Aalak’s Acadia home ultimately led to the death of his father.

Officers were called to the accused’s home late in the afternoon of July 17 for a check on welfare call.

Police returned the next day “to ask more questions and to connect some dots,” said Calgary police acting Insp. Paul Wozney, and Al Aalak was eventually arrested and charged.

Social media accounts appearing to belong to the accused indicated his passion for martial arts.

Al Aalak followed several mixed martial arts fighters on social media and appeared to maintain his own Facebook page promoting himself as an MMA athlete.

On Sept. 15, he’ll also be in provincial court to set a preliminary inquiry date.