World | Iraq Iraq Sentences Fugitive VP to Death ... Again Tariq al-Hashemi is tried in absentia By Newser Editors and Wire Services Posted Nov 1, 2012 1:53 PM CDT Copied Iraq Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi speaks to the media during a news conference in Ankara, Turkey, Monday, Sept. 10, 2012. (AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici) Apparently one death sentence wasn't enough for Tariq al-Hashemi. An Iraqi court today convicted the country's Sunni vice president on charges of ordering bodyguards to assassinate a senior government official and sentenced him to death—the second death sentence for al-Hashemi in less than two months. Both sentences were delivered in absentia, because he is in exile in Turkey. Al-Hashemi fled Iraq in December 2011, when the Shiite-led government accused him of playing a role in numerous attacks. He has previously denied the charges. The criminal court in Baghdad also sentenced al-Hashemi's son-in-law to death on the same charges. Supreme Judicial Council spokesman Abdul-Sattar Bayrkdar says the two suspects ordered bodyguards to kill an official by sticking a bomb to his car. Al-Hashemi's attorney says he was not informed about the hearing or verdict. Read These Next Actor Sam Rockwell gets residuals from movie he wasn't in. Mid That 'buy now, pay later' loan may soon hit your credit score. Cops: Arizona 5th graders drew up plot to 'end' a classmate. Report an error