By Heba Afify
CAIRO: The Alexandria Criminal Court adjourned on Saturday the trial of two policemen from Sidi Gaber station accused of beating Khaled Saeid to death until Dec. 25, citing the absence of some members of the court’s board.Bahey-Eldin Hassan, head of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, told Daily News Egypt that there should have been a faster verdict in the case.
“The continuous delay may lead to the decrease of public interest in the case, whether this is intentional or not,” said Hassan.
Announcing the verdict on Dec. 25, which will coincide with the Christmas holiday, raises questions, he added.
“The verdict will be announced on a day where there is reassurance that all the human rights organizations involved will be on long holidays, I hope that this is a coincidence.”
Activists said there was tight security around the court and Khaled Saeid’s house, which prevented them from gathering at either location. They added that police threatened them with arrest if they did not leave the area altogether.
Flyers titled “The black folder of Khaled Saeid” and signed by “the Popular Movement for the Disclosure of the Truth” were distributed outside of the courthouse on Sunday with a picture of Khaled Saeid in jail and a list of his alleged criminal history.
Activists accused the police of distributing the flyers under the name of a fake organization to prepare the public for the verdict.
The police has maintained that Saeid died of asphyxiation by swallowing a drug wrap. The two policemen were charged with misuse of force by a public official, illegal arrest and torture of an individual arrested illegally.
“This is a sign that they will acquit the officers,” says Mohamed Samir, one of Saeid’s supporters, “Even if Khaled was a reckless guy, this doesn’t justify what they did to him.”
Mohamed Abdel Aziz, lawyer from the Nadeem Center for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence, said that the postponement of court sessions is not uncommon and ruled out the possibility of any bad intention from the court.
