Beatings and harassment of a family: punishment for a citizen refusing to become an informer
Mohamed Sobhi Mohamed El Farakh is an Egyptian 53 year old man who works as a construction carpenter, he is married and has 3 living children; a daughter who is divorced and two sons. He lost his son Adel four years ago to AIDS. He was infected during a blood transfusion in Al Asafera specialist hospital, which led to the closure of the hospital. The hospital was reopened four months later by a decision from the governor.
The death of Adel is not the last tragedy Mohamed Sobhi El Farakh has had to face.
He was contacted more than once by Police Officers from El Raml Police Station 2 to try to convince him to cooperate with them as an informer. Mohamed’s justification for his refusal was clear, it was because of fear for his family from the drug traffickers in the area if he became an informer. He explained this to Police Officer’s Mohamed Ezz and Wael El Komi but they did not stop trying to pressure him.
In the early morning of 17 November 2009 Mohamed and his wife were in Tanta when they got a call about a police raid (by the Police Officers Mohamed Ezz and Wael El Komi along with five secret police men) of his home and injured his 19 year old son Sobhi by breaking his leg which was the effect of a beating from Police Officer Mohamed Ezz’s truncheon. When Mohamed returned home he found it completely destroyed.
He recalls:
“I have a daughter who is divorced and had received 25,000 LE in the divorce… They took the money and took her gold jewellery… they even took the perfume bottles and our passports… they even broke the children’s coin banks.”
On thursday 19 November 2009 Mohamed Sobhi submitted a complaint to the prosecutor of Raml 2, explaining the events of the raid. He was told that the Police Officer who attacked his home will be questioned along with the men that were with him.
On Saturday 21 November 2009 Mohamed Sobhi made another complaint, this time at the office of the Minister of Interior about his and his families harassment. It is complaint number 3493.
Instead of help, Mohamed Sobhi was surprised on the early morning of 22 November 2009 by another raid of his home by Wael El Komi the head of Investigative Services in Raml Police Station 2 and Mohamed Ezz the other Police Officer and a number of members of the secret police that proceeded to beat him and his family. They dropped his younger son who is twelve years old on the stairs and he received injuries to his head and hand and they harassed his wife and daughter.
He recalls “Mohamed Ezz and more than eight secret police men- they broke in to the balcony on the first floor- they got in there and broke through that door and came up to me on the second floor, because the door of the building is made out of iron and is padlocked…. My wife and I, along with my divorced daughter and my 12 year old son Adham and my son with the broken leg… they insulted us in the apartment and took us down to the street, they kicked my wife on the stairs and cursed at her saying “you daughter of a who…” and they touched her, one of them held her arms and one held her from her breasts and one touched her back… they did this to her and my daughter… It is as if we are politicians trying to overthrow the government.”
The only solution for Mohamed Sobhi was to gather his wife and children and seek refuge at his sister’s home. He went back to the prosecutor to make another complaint, he promised him to investigate the state of his apartment, something that has not yet happened as of the date of this statement, he continues to receive threats from El Komi for him to withdraw his complaint and to be an informer, but he refused.
This is how Mohamed Sobhi lives to this day. Away from his looted apartment, with his injured sons, his wife and his daughter’s virtue attacked and living with the loss of dignity at the hands of the Police Officers of Raml Police Station 2 who are being protected by the Prosecutor’s office.