The Abbasiya Court decided on Tuesday to renew the detention of police captain Karim Magdy and three non-commissioned police officers for 45 days pending investigation, over charges of torturing street vendor Magdy Makeen to death in November 2016.
All defendants in the case were accused of torturing Makeen to death.
Recently, the prosecution authorised to investigate the case released six non-commissioned police officers on bail of EGP 3,000.
Makeen was allegedly tortured by about 10 police officers at a police station after he was arrested on 13 November. He was arrested while driving a cart with two of his friends. His family learned of his death on 14 November and his body was transferred to Al-Zaytoun hospital. Upon his transfer, signs of physical assault and torture were found on his body.
There have been hundreds of complaints documented by non-governmental organisations addressing torture in police custody and detention centres. The Interior Ministry usually responds to these complaints by denying that this abuse is systematic, explaining that these cases are “individual” and “do not represent the ministry as whole”.
The autopsy report issued by the Forensic Authority stipulated that torture was the reason behind Makeen’s death. The report indicated that someone had stood on Makeen’s back, which resulted in Makeen experiencing a severe state of panic. He then developed a blood clot in his lungs, which resulted in his death.
