A highly dangerous criminal element was killed on Saturday following an exchange of gunfire with Egyptian security forces in the village of Al-Samta in the Deshna center. The young criminal had posted a video on social media platform Facebook, promoting the sale of drugs, armed and presenting it as a treatment for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
Security forces from Qena's Directorate of Security launched a major security campaign in the village of Al-Samta to capture the criminal element, identified as "Farag Abu Al-Saud," and succeeded in killing him during the exchange of fire.
According to Al-Watan newspaper, several social media users shared a video of a young man from Upper Egypt promoting his drug trade as a means to combat the worsening spread of coronavirus. The video showed a young man, whose accent indicated he was from Upper Egypt, holding an automatic weapon, with another weapon nearby, as he began promoting his drug trade as a response to COVID-19.
During the video, the young man detailed his drug dealings and claimed that his trade in drugs was preferable to theft. He concluded the video by disclosing his mobile phone number without revealing his name, intending to facilitate drug buyers in contacting him to coordinate how to obtain the narcotics and arrange delivery.
The security forces successfully located his hiding place, killed him, and transferred the body to the hospital, where the public prosecution was notified to take over the investigation.
