Egypt’s Public Prosecution decided on July 19 to renew the detention under investigation of lawyer Hani Farouk Gedran Guirguis, for a period of 45 days.
He had been arrested since June 4, 2022, and the Public Prosecution decided to remand him in custody pending investigations in Case No. 9369 for the year 2022 Al-Mataria misdemeanour. His detention was then extended by 15 days.
The Public Prosecution accused him with a number of charges:
First: Deliberately spreading false news and rumors about the kidnapping of a number of Christian women without state intervention, thus disturbing public security and creating fear among the people.
Second: Acquisition of a means used in publishing, namely his mobile phone, and using it in this crime of publishing.
Third: Infringement of the family principles and values of Egyptian society.
Fourth: Managing a special account (on social media) used in the publishing crime.
The renewal judge issued a decision on July 5 to continue the detention of Mr. Hani Farouk for another 15 days.
It is worth noting that Mr. Hani Farouk is a cassation lawyer. He was born in 1964, meaning that he is nearly sixty years old. Moreover, he suffers from very poor conditions of imprisonment in the detention area in the Matariya Police Department.
Mr Hani Farouk was prevented from communicating with his family through visits, without taking into account his health status and the psychological and moral impact of what is happening to him, being a well-known lawyer.
The defense team expressed concerns over the medical condition of the detainee, and renewed the request that he be released until the investigation is completed for fear of his life, given the conditions of his illness
