Court sentences 12 to death in Matay case

CAIRO – 11 July 2017: The Minya Criminal Court sentenced 12 defendants to death on Tuesday over accusations of breaking into the Matay police station and killing an officer. Meanwhile 391 defendants were scheduled to receive sentences on August 7.

Under tight security measures, the court referred the case of the 12 defendants to the Grand Mufti of the state after hearing their defense.

The defendants were given a retrial on April 28, 2014, after 37 were sentenced to death, 394 sentenced to life in prison, and 17 others acquitted.

The Grand Mufti acts as the primary religious advisor to the president, before final sentencing. The Mufti’s opinion is not binding but is traditionally followed by the judiciary.

Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated citizens broke into the Matay police station during the chaos that followed the dispersal of Rabaa and Nahda sit-ins in Cairo after the removal of the Muslim Brotherhood regime in 2013.