A 39-year-old man confessed on Thursday in the Copenhagen City Court (Københavns Byret) to having stabbed 21-year-old Jonas Thomsen Sekyere, leading to the young man’s death nearly 12 years ago at a nightclub called Bakken in Kødbyen, a district known for its nightlife. Following his arrest in Ethiopia, it was revealed that the man had already been convicted and served a sentence in Somaliland for the crime.

During the preliminary court hearing, the man, dressed in black jogging clothes and limping on one leg, described how he had been under the influence of alcohol and experienced a blackout during the incident, which occurred in a restroom at the nightclub. After the stabbing, he fled Denmark and traveled to Somaliland via Sweden and Ethiopia, partially due to his confusion and lack of understanding of what to do next.

Special prosecutor Søren Harbo explained during the court session that the sentence from Somaliland is not recognized by the Danish authorities. As such, despite having served time, Danish authorities wish to prosecute the 39-year-old again, mainly due to the nature of the legal proceedings in Somaliland, which included reliance on photos from Google Street View and an extradition request from Denmark.

In Somaliland, the man was sentenced to ten years in prison and ordered to pay compensation equivalent to one-third of a camel, later valued at over $8,000 to the deceased’s family. He was arrested in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, after being identified under a Danish warrant and subsequently transferred to Denmark.

During the court session, the 39-year-old took a break to smoke a cigarette after 20 minutes, before returning to answer more questions, although he appeared visibly exhausted and spoke in a very low voice. Danish authorities are now preparing to continue the trial against him in Denmark.