The public prosecution has referred 75 suspects to criminal court for their alleged involvement in the violence that took place after a football match in Port Said on 1 February.
In a press statement, the public prosecution’s official spokesperson, Adel al-Saeed, said the prosecution has charged nine policemen, three officials from the Masry club and the electrical engineer in charge at the Port Said Stadium with helping the perpetrators of the incident commit murder, having had the full knowledge that some Masry fans were planning to assault Ahly fans.
Saeed added that the prosecution has charged the other suspects — the physical attackers — with “premeditated murder and attempted murder.”
Al-Masry Al-Youm reported that the suspects also include other local officials: Mohamed al-Razzaz, the head of the criminal investigation department; Hesham Selim, the public security inspector; and Bahey Eddin Zaghloul, the national security inspector.
Two minors have also been referred to minors court, MENA reported.
He added that policemen and officials from Masry club facilitated the invaders’ access to the stadium in large numbers, exceeding its allowed ceiling by 3,000.
Furthermore, Saeed added that the accused allowed Masry fans to go to their seats without searching them or confiscating the fireworks, knives and other weapons and they were carrying.
Policemen and Masry officials were well-aware that some of the spectators entering the stadium were thugs, yet allowed them to enter and refrained from intervening when the attackers broke and climbed over the fences around the football pitch at the end of the match, he said.
The statement added that the police suspects did not intervene when the thugs attacked Ahly fans in the stadium and the stadium's electricity engineer turned off the lights to facilitate the fighting.
The armed attackers had the intention to take revenge on Ahly fans to flex their muscles, Saeed said, adding that they used flares, rocks, knives and other objects and weapons to attack Ahly fans, he said.
Saeed said that in addition to the murders, crimes of personal robbery, vandalism, willful damage to public and private property, thuggery, intimidation and possession of fireworks and unlicensed bladed weapons also took place.
The Port Said incident was premeditated by some Masry fan groups and thugs, Saeed said.
