CAIRO: The Cairo Criminal Court should prepare itself for a lot of surprises during the trial of Mahmoud Sayed Abdel Hafez Essawy, charged with the murder of Heba El-Akkad and Nadine Khaled in Al-Nada compound in Sheikh Zayed, said the defendant s lawyer. Ahmed Gomaa, Essawy s lawyer, claims he has evidence that Essawy was made to confess under duress during the interrogation. The court is scheduled to reconvene today to hear the coroner's testimony with the aim to compare the forensic evidence with the defendant s account of the murder, said Essam Shiha, Khaled s lawyer. Though Essawy had reenacted the murders in front of the public prosecution, a video of which was shown during Sunday s hearing, Gomaa said both the reenactment and Essawy s incriminating statements were extracted under pressure. He s a 19-year-old kid and he was coerced into making those statements, Gomaa said. Essawy s family has made similar claims to the local press. In a statement to Al-Masry Al-Youm Sunday, Essawy s father said his son was being used as a scapegoat and that police officers had promised him a kiosk and only 6 months in prison in exchange for a confession. Essawy pleaded "not guilty to the murders. Both Shiha and Gomaa are counting on the coroner s report to prove their case. While Shiha believes an examination of the size and depth of the victims wounds will reveal that they were inflicted in the manner described during the reenactment, Gomaa said the coroner s report revealed inconsistencies between the forensic evidence and the confessions extracted from the defendant. Shiha, however, rejected the idea that Essawy s statements were extracted under pressure. He confessed without any pressure from anyone, but it s normal for him to retract his statements now that he s facing the death penalty, said Shiha. Confident that he has a solid case, Shiha said he insisted that Essawy be charged under Article 234 of the penal code, which prescribes the death penalty for premeditated murder. Gomaa, however, was equally confident of Essawy s innocence. I m not even getting paid for this case. he said.
