Terror found its way to the peaceful town of Deir Muwwas in Minya, Upper Egypt when Assaad Fahim’s son, Mina, was last week kidnapped in front of his school, and a ransom of EGP2 million claimed by the kidnappers
Terror found its way to the peaceful town of Deir Muwwas in Minya, Upper Egypt when Assaad Fahim’s son, Mina, was last week kidnapped in front of his school, and a ransom of EGP2 million claimed by the kidnappers.
Mr Fahim directly went to the security officials who, in order to start working on the case, asked the father to sign that he agreed to have his son returned to him dead or alive. The horrified father decided to pay the money to get his son back; for that he borrowed huge sums of money and paid the ransom.
It appeared, however, that the victory whet the appetite of the kidnappers for more, especially given the seeming apathy of the security authority. Three other Coptic traders; Sami Ayoub, Nabil Fikry and Ishaq Selim; received threats that, unless they paid tribute money of EGP100,000 each to the kidnapper gang, their children would be kidnapped too. The Copts sent distressed calls for help to the security authorities, Minya governor, Military Council and the Prime Minister, but all in vain. Out of sheer terror of meeting the same fate as the Fahims, all Deir Muwwas Coptic families stopped sending their children to school or to church; several refrained from going to work altogether to be there to protect their children
The inertia of the security officials gave rise to rumours in town that they were in collaboration with the gang; that the ransom money paid by Fahim had been split between them.
WATANI International
27 April 2012