(AFP Photo)
A group of men accused of amputating a man’s finger are set to face trial on 3 August.
The date was set by the Cairo Appeals Court on Saturday, state-run MENA reported. The five accused will stand trial before the North Cairo Criminal Court on charges of torture, detaining a man and amputating his finger.
On 15 July, a man who chose not to reveal his name claimed in an interview with the Tahrir TV channel that protesters at Rabaa Al-Adaweya tortured him and amputated his finger. Supporters of former president Mohamed Morsi have been encamped at Rabaa Al-Adaweya for weeks.
Investigations indicate that the attackers detained the victim and severely beat him, kicked him and assaulted him with melee weapons. They also tied him up inside a room close to the sit-in and tortured him with electric shocks.
The victim claimed in his interview when he was in the room, his attackers said they were going to cut off his hand but then a sheikh stepped in and said that cutting off his finger would be enough, and they cut off his left index finger.
Doctors confirmed that the victim’s left index finger had in fact been severed and he sustained cuts, bruises and abrasions on various parts of his body.
The man claims that he was on his way to use a bathroom located in a mall situated next to the pro-Morsi sit-in when he was accused of stealing a phone by a protester before a crowd of around 40 stick-wielding men surrounded him.
The alleged attackers tried to take him to a remote area after the assault, but were arrested while doing so.
Ministry of Interior reports indicate that at least four were arrested after security forces spotted them standing outside a car replacing one of the tires at the side of the road. The victim was inside the car and showed signs of injury, when police asked him what happened, he said he was attacked by these men.
The general prosecutor’s office charged the men with attempted murder, unlawful detention and torture, and carrying melee weapons without a license.
