Egypt releases men accused of gang rape in luxury hotel

CAIRO: Egypt’s prosecutor-general on Tuesday ordered the release of a group of young men accused of raping a woman in a Cairo luxury hotel in 2014 in after allegations surfaced online last year. The alleged assault which took place at the Fairmont Hotel, a fivestar Cairo hotel, involved a group of young men hailing from wealthy families said to have drugged and raped a young woman, according to social media accounts which were investigated by public prosecutors.

“There is insufficient evidence against the defendants to proceed with a criminal case. The release of those temporarily detained has been ordered,” the prosecutor-general said in a late statement. The public prosecution explained how it pursued the alleged perpetrators by instituting travel bans and issuing international arrest warrants for the extradition of three of them from Lebanon. It also said it questioned the victim, a witness who was in the hotel suite and 39 other witnesses who viewed footage of a video clip which circulated showing the alleged rape. Police investigating the alleged incident and forensic doctors were also questioned, the prosecutor added.

Other reasons cited for the closing of the investigation were that “contradictions appeared in the testimonies of witnesses about key facts of the incident”.

However, it noted the investigation could be reopened again if further evidence came to light. Egypt’s #Metoo movement has picked up momentum since last year with many women coming forward to share testimonies of sexual misconduct. United Nations surveys say most women in the deeply conservative country have been subject to harassment ranging from catcalling, to pinching, groping and rape.