Missing photojournalist Omar Adel appeared in El-Marg police station, close to the Matariya district on Sunday night. His family had reported him missing, as reports of his arrest by security forces circulated.
Ali El-Halwany, lawyer at the independent Journalists Against Torture Observatory (JATO), who had been following up on the case since Adel’s brother informed him of the arrest on Friday night, claimed Sunday evening that El-Marg police station had previously denied Adel’s presence.
“I stayed at the police station trying to find him, and there he was, entering the station among a group of detainees. He looked messy and there were signs of beating on his face. I could not speak to him,” El-Halwany posted on Facebook.
The lawyer claimed he spoke to a senior police official who turned him down by telling him that the case was in the hands of the National Security. El-Halwany condemned what he described as “unlawful procedures” against Adel, who was supposed to stand before prosecution at most 24 hours after his detention.
On Monday, El-Halwany told Daily News Egypt that he filed a complaint to the Marg prosecution authorities, who in turn should question the police station about Adel’s legal status.
