Four teens charged with killing minor

CAIRO - 13 October 2019: Four teenagers were charged with killing a minor who tried to stop them from harassing a girl in Menoufia governorate, Egypt’s Delta, according to a statement issued by the Attorney General Office on Saturday.

Attorney-General Hamada al-Sawi referred the main accused student, Mohamed Ashraf Rageh (under the age of 18), and his three friends to trial for killing Mahmoud Mohamed Eid al-Banna premeditatedly.

A Menoufia Juvenile Court set October 20 for the first trial of the accused students, the court decided Sunday.

As per the initial investigations, Banna tried to stop Rageh from annoying and harassing a girl in their neighborhood at Talla village of Menoufia Governorate, publishing a post on his Instagram account to ask the killer to stop his actions. However, Rageh sent Banna threatening messages and plotted to kill him with the assistance of the three other accused students.

Five days ago, Rageh and his friends stopped Banna in the street, and sprayed a substance in his eyes and injured his face with a pocketknife. When Banna screamed and tried to escape, Rageh stabbed him in the left thigh, while Rageh’s aides were preventing Banna’s friend from rescuing him, the investigations added

The crime stirred public anger as residents of the neighborhood staged a demonstration, calling for holding the students accountable for their actions. Egyptian social media users created a hashtag on Twitter and Facebook calling for punishment for Rageh.

As per the Egyptian Child Labor, minors who are under the age of 18 and commit homicide crimes shall not face sentences of death or life imprisonment.