An Egyptian criminal court sentenced a police officer and a low-ranking policeman to life in prison on Saturday after they stood accused of torturing a detainee to death and using force against another one. The incident dates back to October 2014 and took place in Tanta city to the north of Cairo, where one detainee was beaten to death to extort confessions from him and the other was injured after sustaining electric shocks. Typically, policemen are accused of “beating that led to death” in torture cases like this one but this case marks a significant development because it is the first this year in which policemen are accused of violating Article 126 of the Penal Code, according to Al-Haqanya Centre for Advocacy and Law. Article 126 states that any employee who orders or carries out the torture of a defendant to extort confessions is punished by high security prison of between three to 10 years, or handed the same penalty as murder if the defendant dies. Al-Haqanya Centre, which is defending the surviving detainee, said the two detainees were arrested on Oct. 18, 2014 and were asked to sign five…
Egyptian Policemen Sentenced to Life in Prison for Torturing Detainee to Death
December 27, 2015
