Yesterday, Monday, the Egyptian judiciary issued a decision to uphold the death sentence against the defendants accused of killing the broadcaster, Shaimaa Gamal; they are her husband, the former state advisor, Ayman Abdel Fattah, and his partner in the crime, Hassan Al-Gharabli.
The case sparked widespread anger in the Egyptian street in June 2022, when the broadcaster’s body was discovered on a farm located south of Giza Governorate, in a state of decomposition and disfigurement.
The verdict in the murder of broadcaster Shaima Gamal
After investigations, the Egyptian Public Prosecution referred the husband of the deceased broadcaster, Shaimaa Gamal. Former Advisor Ayman Abdel Fattahand his partner in the crime to the Criminal Court, where a decision was issued to execute the accused in the murder.
Egyptian media reported that after the Criminal Court referred the defendants’ papers to the Grand Mufti regarding the death sentence, the Court of Cassation upheld the decision yesterday.
Investigations revealed that the first accused, the victim’s husband, intended to get rid of her after “she threatened to reveal their secrets and blackmailed him into keeping it secret by asking him for sums of money.” So he offered the second accused to help him kill her, and the latter agreed in exchange for money.
The Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram said that investigations revealed that the accused had resolved and intended to kill the late media figure, and had devised a plan in which they agreed to rent a remote farm to kill her there, and to hide her body in a grave they would dig there.
Details of the murder of broadcaster Shaima Gamal
The prosecution indicated that the defendants bought tools to dig the grave, and prepared a gun and a piece of cloth to tightly kill their victim and paralyze her resistance, chains and iron shackles to transport the body to the grave after killing her, and a flammable substance to disfigure its features before burial.
The crime sparked outrage on social media, and that summer saw a spike in crimes against women.
The brutality of the crime, which was revealed by local media, also left a shock due to its horrific details, especially since the victim’s body was mutilated.
Investigations revealed that on the day the two perpetrators had set to implement their plan, the first accused lured the victim to the farm under the pretext of inspecting it in order to buy it, while… The second accused Waiting for him there.
When the two accused caught up with the victim, the first accused surprised her by hitting her on the head with the handle of the gun, causing her to lose her balance and fall to the ground. He then knelt on her with his hands and the piece of cloth until he suffocated her.
The second defendant, in turn, grabbed the victim to paralyze her resistance, then chained her body. In the grave, they poured the caustic substance on it to disfigure its features.
The path to truth
The Public Prosecution established evidence against the accused based on the testimony of 10 witnesses, including the owner of the store from whom the two accused bought the digging tools and the flammable material, as well as the statements of the accused during the investigations, which began with the second accused guiding them to the location of the body on the farm and explaining the details of the crime, then the first accused confessing after he was arrested to committing the murder.
The investigations added that the forensic report confirmed that the victim’s death was due to suffocation and pressure on her neck. The evidence also included the presence of the two fingerprints of the accused on the piece of cloth found on the victim’s body.
The phone chips used on the day of the crime were also found within the geographical scope of the communication tower located near the farm where the incident occurred, according to what Al-Ahram confirmed.
The husband of broadcaster Shaimaa Gamal had filed a false report about her absence, but the Public Prosecution took action based on its doubts about the husband’s report, after hearing the testimony of some members of the victim’s family.
The Public Prosecution’s statement at the time said that on 26 June In the past, a person who had a close relationship with the victim’s husband came forward to testify. He confirmed the judge’s husband’s involvement in killing his wife following a dispute between them, revealing that he had witnessed the circumstances of the murder and knew where her body was buried.