Egypt’s Prosecution orders referring man who beheaded another in Ismailia to urgent trial

CAIRO – 5 November 2021: Egypt’s Public Prosecution ordered on Thursday referring a man accused of deliberately murdering and beheading another person in Ismailia to urgent trial.

According to a statement by the prosecution, the man is also accused of attempting to kill two others.

The man admitted possessing white weapons and taking drugs.

A forensic report revealed that the defendant did not show any symptoms of mental or psychological disturbance that might have affected his awareness and will during the crime, the prosecution said.

Footage had circulated on social media, before they were deleted for violating terms, of a person in his twenties, attacking an older man with a cleaver, beheading him, and walking among people while holding the man’s head.

The videos have triggered a state of intimidation, grief, and wrath, with relatives of the victim and social media users calling for justice to be served.

In an earlier statement, the prosecution said the defendant has admitted the charges and affirmed he took different drugs on that day, which he named.

“The prosecution also decided to take the necessary measures to learn about the extent of the health and safety of his psychological and mental state, for what was reported in this regard, contrary to the balanced attitude the accused showed during the investigations, his re-enactment of the incident.”

The statement urged people to stop sharing footages of the incident for the “cruel scenes” they contain and to respect the feelings of the victim’s relatives.

The prosecution urged those possessing such videos to hand them to the relevant authorities.

It also called on everyone to stop speaking of claims about the defendant’s psychological health and the motives for which he committed the crime, saying these claims are untrue and put those sharing them under legal responsibility.

The prosecution also said sharing these claims harm others’ private life and integrity of investigations and their outcome.

“The Public Prosecution knows the extent of the tragedy that befell the victims and their families and the sorrow the citizens’ hearts have felt due to the scenes of that heinous crime,” the statement said.

The prosecution affirmed that the commission of such crimes are “not justified by any motive whatsoever, and the Public Prosecution will not hesitate to take measures to achieve prompt justice that reassures hearts.”