Trial over 2012 torture of Egyptian bakery worker in Salamina begins
The trial of four men accused of torturing an Egyptian bakery worker in 2012 on an island near the Greek capital, began on Tuesday in Piraeus after being postponed four times.
Waleed Taleb was 29 years old when he was found by passers-by on the island of Salamina, off the coast of Piraeus, collapsed by a tree, with a chain tied around his neck and brutally beaten.
Taleb has accused his boss, the bakery owner, his boss’s son and another two men of holding him against his will in a stable, where he was chained and repeatedly beaten after sparking his employer’s anger by demanding unpaid wages. He managed to escape after 18 hours of torture and threats of sexual assault.
“They dragged me around like a dog,” Taleb said in an interview with Reuters after his ordeal. “I thought this was the end for me. I kept fainting, and every time I fainted they would hit me with rods to wake me up.”
Taleb claims that his assailants also stole 12,000 euros that he was holding for friends who also worked on the island.
The defendants have admitted to beating Taleb but accuse him to taking 150 euros from the bakery’s till.
Taleb’s ordeal did not end with his escape as he was detained at the hospital where he was being treated and given 30 days to leave the country. His deportation was subsequently cancelled due to a public outcry.
