Egypt has arrested a man who was allegedly caught on CCTV assaulting a seven-year-old girl.
The footage, which circulated on social media on Monday, caused outrage. It is not clear when it was filmed, however, it appears to show a man identified as Mohamed Gawdat leading a young girl into the staircase of a building in the Maadi district of Cairo. He is then seen abusing the child.
Women living in the flat next to the staircase then open the door of their apartment and confront the man.
Once they inform him that he has been caught on CCTV, the man flees.“Security agencies were able to detain the person in question … to determine the circumstances of the incident that spread on social networking site Facebook showing a person sexually assaulting a girl,” a statement by the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. It is believed the girl sells tissues on the streets near the building.
According to the Egyptian penal code, the maximum penalty for sexually assaulting a child under the age of 18 is seven years in prison.
WATCH: Video of a man sexually assaulting 5-year-old boy sparks outrage in Egypt