Defendants handed down 15, 20 year sentences for Port Said rape case

The Port Said Criminal Juvenile Court on Sunday sentenced two defendants accused of raping five-year-old Zeina Arafah to 20 years and 15 years in jail, state-run MENA reported.

The defendants are under the legal age, which makes them ineligible for the death penalty.

The court had postponed the verdict based on the victim’s lawyer’s request, since he said he would present evidence to prove that one of the defendants is above the legal age and that he should be tried before the Criminal Court.    

Last November, 17-year-old Mahmoud Kasbar and 15-year-old Alaa Gomaa lured young Zeina to a rooftop, allegedly intending to rape her. When the young girl resisted the brutal attack, her aggressors threw her from the 11^th floor.

In an interview with MBC Masr following the verdict, the victim’s mother Shaimaa Ghazal said the verdict was “unjust,” adding that they should have received the death penalty.

Ghazal said the court should have made an example out of the two defendants for whoever thinks about raping or assaulting a girl. “But now everything is permitted,” she said.  

“This country is ruled by connections; whoever pays money gets their way,” the victim’s mother said, “let us pay then and get the verdict we want.”

Governor Sameh Qandil named one of the main squares in Port Said after the victim in solidarity with her family.