By Coptic Solidarity –
On April 30, 2025, Sabry Kamel, a 79-year-old Coptic man, was sentenced to life in prison by the Damanhour Criminal Court in Egypt on charges of molesting a 5-year-old Muslim child at the school where he volunteered.
Kamel, who served as the volunteer part-time accountant of Al-Karma Christian School—a nonprofit affiliated with the Coptic Orthodox Diocese in Al-Behaira Governorate—was tried and convicted despite the absence of supporting evidence typically required under Egyptian law as part of the Notice of Application.
Kamel’s legal counsel, Mr. Maher Naeim, criticized the proceedings for failing to conduct a physical or forensic examination of the accused, especially given that the medical report on the child did not confirm a sexual assault. The report listed multiple preexisting health conditions that could explain the symptoms. The court also ignored medical records documenting Kamel’s severe heart condition, including a recent open-heart surgery.
As the trial began, a crowd of Salafist and Muslim Brotherhood sympathizers gathered outside the courthouse, chanting for Kamel’s execution. (It’s worth noting that Damanhour, which is situated some 70 km to the south-east of Alexandria, is a bastion of such extremist groups.) Inside, the judge readily accepted the claimant’s defense to escalate the charge from “molestation of a minor without the use of force” to “molestation with the use of force”—a significant procedural change that, under normal legal standards, would require adjournment. Instead, the court proceeded to issue the maximum sentence—life imprisonment—on the same day.
In a post-trial interview, Essam Mehanna, the complainant’s lawyer (who later abruptly resigned from the case), stated: “The case was flimsy and would have collapsed were it not for the mob shouting outside the courthouse.” Several legal experts and independent attorneys—both Copts and Muslims—who reviewed the case files expressed shock at what they described as a wholly unjustified ruling.
Timeline and Contradictions
The case originated in December 2023, when Rehab Osama Abdul-Mo’ti, the mother of the alleged victim, filed a police report accusing Kamel of molesting her son, Yasin, in the school bathroom. The case was twice archived due to insufficient evidence, including the fact that during identification sessions, the child positively identified someone other than Kamel in two out of five instances.
The case was reopened in March 2024, following what prosecutors described as “new evidence”—which turned out to be hearsay from Nada Al-Ghazali, a friend of the mother and not an eyewitness.
Multiple witnesses—both Muslim and Christian—testified that it would have been logistically impossible for anyone from the administrative building to access the kindergarten bathrooms, which are fenced off and housed in a separate structure.
Defense lawyers also questioned the chronology in the mother’s testimony. She claimed she became aware of the incident on January 14, 2024, and contacted her husband, who was working abroad, the following day. The father returned on February 2, but then– oddly enough– visited the school shortly afterward to register Yasin for the next term. The court dismissed these and other inconsistencies, and proceeded to impose the sentence.
Social Media and Misinformation
The case was heavily inflamed by Nihad Kotb, a woman who initially claimed to be a friend of Yasin’s mother. On social media, she shared graphic and unsubstantiated accounts of the alleged assault, which she later admitted were fabricated. Kotb stated she invented the story to ensure Kamel would receive the maximum sentence, claiming she did it to deliver “justice” for the child.
Kotb also accused Demiana, the school janitor responsible for the kindergarten bathrooms, of repeatedly escorting the child to Kamel for abuse and then cleaning him up afterward. She further alleged that Principal Wafaa Edward ignored the child’s complaints and attempted to cover up the incident.
These inflammatory claims sparked widespread outrage, particularly among the Muslim public, and nearly ignited sectarian tensions in Damanhour—even after Kotb confessed to her fabrications. The situation escalated when Education Minister Mohamed Abdel Latif dismissed the school principal and appointed a committee to review the school’s operations before any legal verdict had been issued, further inflaming tensions.
Intimidation and Fallout
In a YouTube interview, Demiana, the janitor, recounted how she was summoned to the police station and pressured to testify against Kamel. She refused to provide false testimony and was released without charges. Nevertheless, she has since received rape threats targeting her two young daughters.
On May 12, 2025, Judge Sherif Kamel issued his written justifications of the ruling, reaffirming the life sentence for Sabry Kamel despite the lack of evidence, inconsistencies in testimony, and absence of eyewitnesses. The case is now expected to be appealed before a higher court.
The public opinion remains quite divided. But what all fair-minded people demand is to render unblemished justice, irrespective of faith affiliation or any other consideration.
