The Egyptian Public Prosecution announced that it has ordered the detention of a Brazilian young man for directing sexual innuendos at an Egyptian girl working in a bazaar in Luxor. The monitoring and analysis unit within the Public Prosecutor's Office noticed a video circulating on social media that showed the Brazilian verbally abusing the Egyptian girl with sexual insinuations in a foreign language while she was presenting papyrus sheets to him. Users of these platforms managed to translate the abuses, revealing that he mocked the girl, who appeared smiling and unaware of the verbal assault against her. The prosecution also noted the public's outrage over the incident and their demands to pursue the Brazilian.
The Brazilian attempted to amend his image by claiming he was joking with the girl, and after presenting the matter to the Public Prosecutor, he ordered an urgent investigation. The investigation identified the Brazilian's identity and location, the girl’s identity, and the location of the incident. It was revealed that the Brazilian left Luxor on May 30th heading to Cairo, with the flight number identified, in a bid to escape the social media calls for pursuit. Investigations confirmed that the incident occurred on May 24th at a papyrus shop in Giza, and witnesses from a tourist group accompanying the Brazilian were identified. The Brazilian filmed the incident, as he was accustomed to posting numerous videos on social media, gaining many followers for his account. Consequently, the Public Prosecution included the name of the Brazilian suspect on the travel ban list.
Upon questioning the victim, she testified that she received the suspect at the shop she worked in, and he filmed her while explaining the content and method of making the papyrus sheets for him and the group accompanying him. However, she was shocked when the suspect published the video, realizing afterward that it contained phrases that offended her modesty. The next day, the suspect approached her, apologized, and filmed his apology, which he shared on social media; nevertheless, she insisted on pursuing criminal action due to the harm she suffered from the video's release.
The Public Prosecution consulted a specialized translator who confirmed that the foreign phrases used by the suspect in the video contained sexually explicit innuendos. Accordingly, the suspect was detained while on his way to Cairo International Airport and presented to the Public Prosecution, which interrogated him regarding the allegations of making sexual insinuations towards the victim and infringing on the principles and family values of Egyptian society, as well as violating the victim's private life and using an electronic account to commit these crimes. He claimed that his remarks were meant as a joke and that he apologized after receiving criticisms from his followers.
The Public Prosecution ordered the detention of the suspect until the investigations were resumed the following morning, after which a decision regarding his case would be made.
