CAIRO – 27 June 2018: The head of the Investigations unit at Hadayek Al-Kobba police station, his assistant and another four policemen were ordered to be remanded for additional 15 days pending investigation, over the death of a suspect in custody.
The General Prosecution ordered the arrest of four policemen in Hadayek Al-Kobba police station over accusations of torturing Ahmed S., 39, in custody till death, according to media reports.
The West Cairo prosecution also ordered the detention of the head of the Investigations Unit of the police station and his assistant for four days pending investigation for unlawfully detaining the victim and treating him in an inhumane way that resulted in his death.
The victim was arrested over accusations of stealing critical files from a firm specialized in legal consultations. The defendant denied the accusations and suddenly started vomiting; he died while being transferred to El-Zaitoun Hospital, according to the policemen.
Afroto’s case Two policemen including an officer have been accused of beating 22-year old Mohamed Abdel Hakim, aka Afroto, to death. Interrogations show that Afroto, accused by the police of abusing drugs, was also illegally kept in custody.
According to the prosecution’s decision, policeman, Mohamed A., is accused of pushing down Afroto, while the other defendant, police officer, Mohamed S., is accused of kicking him in the chest causing him the injuries cited in the forensic report. In its statement, the prosecution accused both policemen of beating the victim to death without the intention to kill him.
The forensic report revealed that the cause of Afroto’s death was an internal bleeding caused by a broken rib, and a laceration in the left lung due to a severe hit on a solid object. The report, thus, contradicts with police allegations that Afroto died due to drugs over dose.
Moreover, the forensic report said that the rolls possessed by Afroto were filled with about 10 grams of a green plant which is not on the Egyptian prohibited list of drugs.
Egypt slams HRW report
In September 2017, HRW published a report accusing the Egyptian authorities of torturing prisoners, and calling on the United Nations to punish those who commit such violations. The report interviewed a number of detainees who were tortured by police in the period from 2014 to 2016, according to the report.
In response to the HRW report, the Foreign Ministry condemned "the unfounded and biased" report, which manifests unprofessionalism at its best, quoting unknown and anonymous sources.
The ministry further denounced the group's deliberate denial of the progress made in the field of promoting human rights in Egypt over the past few years, demonstrating its intention to promote and incite violence.
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