1. Personal information
a. Birth: The child Ahmed Abdullah was born on 3 February 2003. He was arrested on 20 December 2019, at the age of 16, in connection with the “Joker” case.
b. Upbringing: He grew up in the El-Arbaeen area of Suez Governorate, in a family made up of his parents, his brother and his sister.
c. Occupation: Third-year student at a commercial secondary school, marketing department.
d. Political activity/affiliation: He has no political activity or affiliation.
2. Previous arrests: The child Ahmed Abdullah was not arrested in any other case.
3. Timeline from the arrest to the verdict
a. Background of the arrest:
– 20 December 2019, arrest: The child Ahmed was arrested at his home in the El-Arbaeen area of Suez, during a wide campaign launched by the Egyptian security forces after a video appeared showing 4 unidentified children wearing “Vendetta” masks and calling for protests on 25 January 2020. This followed the “September 2019 events”, which began alongside the calls for protest published by the contractor Mohamed Ali and by Tamer Gamal, known as “Atwa Kenana”.
– 27 January 2020, appearance before the Supreme State Security Prosecution: He appeared before the Supreme State Security Prosecution after an enforced disappearance that lasted 37 days. He was interrogated and then added to the case known in the media as the “Joker case”.
b. Background of the case: Case No. 653 of 2021, Emergency State Security Felonies, First Settlement, registered as No. 195 of 2021 New Cairo Plenary, and as No. 1357 of 2019 Supreme State Security Inquiry, known in the media as the “Joker case”.
– The case began in November and December 2019 and January 2020, when a security crackdown started with a wide campaign targeting some of the people who took part in the September 2019 events, along with random arrests of residents of the area. Many people were arrested, among them men, women and children, over the video mentioned above. The child Ahmed Abdullah is among the detained children referred to trial in the case. The referral order includes 103 defendants, among them 28 children (17 detained, 10 released and one fugitive) and one woman, Ms. Marwa Abd El-Ghani Abd El-Baqi, who remained in detention until the verdict was issued.
c. Charges: The referral order included several charges against the child Ahmed Abdullah, defendant No. 79 in the case, including:
– Taking part in an assembly of more than five people that endangers public peace, with the aim of committing assaults on persons and influencing public officials in the performance of their duties through force and violence.
– Attempted murder.
– Using force and violence against public servants and persons assigned to a public service.
– Endangering the safety of public land transport and obstructing its movement with the intent of disturbing public order, and endangering the safety and security of society.
– Possession of conventional firearms and bladed weapons for use in committing terrorist crimes.
– Possession of black powder explosives without a license, with the intent of using them in an activity that disturbs public security for a terrorist purpose.
d. Trial and sentences:
– 28 April 2021, referral to the Criminal Court: The First Attorney General of the State Security Prosecution, Chief Justice of Appeal Counselor Khaled Diaa, referred the defendants in the “Joker” case to the competent criminal court.
– 24 May 2021, first hearing scheduled: The President of the Court of Appeal, Counselor Tarek Abu Zeid, set the first hearing of the case for 26 June 2021 before the Fifth Terrorism Circuit (B).
– 26 June 2021, first trial hearing: The first hearings began before the Cairo Criminal Court, Fifth Terrorism Circuit (B), presided over by Judge Mohamed Saeed El-Sherbiny.
– 5 October 2022, case reserved for verdict: The Cairo Criminal Court, First Terrorism Circuit, presided over by Judge Mohamed Saeed El-Sherbiny, reserved the case for the verdict to be pronounced at the 15 January 2023 hearing.
– 15 January 2023, verdict: The Cairo Criminal Court, First Terrorism Circuit, presided over by Judge Mohamed Saeed El-Sherbiny, sentenced the child Ahmed Abdullah to 5 years in prison.
4. Detention conditions
a. Places of detention: He was first held in an unknown location, then transferred to the National Security headquarters in Suez, and remained in unlawful detention for 25 days until he was moved to Ataka Police Station in Suez.
b. Violations:
– Enforced disappearance for 37 days.
– Severe beating and insults during his arrest at home.
– Unlawful detention inside National Security premises.
– Falsification of the arrest report by the officer who wrote it. The authorities claimed he was arrested at home on 27 January 2020 and that they searched him and found a bladed weapon (a knife). In fact he was arrested at home on 20 December 2019, and all he had on him was his ID card and his mobile phone, with no evidence items at all.
c. Living conditions at the police station: As a third-year commercial secondary student, his detention blocked the continuation of his studies, since the police station refused to let him sit his exams. The team of lawyers representing him obtained a decision from the Public Prosecution allowing him to continue his studies and sit his exams at the Suez Security Directorate.