British prosecution said that the brutal attack that left Egyptian student Mariam Moustafa in a coma before death could not be “legally and reliably linked” to her tragic death on Thursday, June 13.
Mostafa, 18, an engineering student who moved six years ago from Italy to the UK, was severely beaten and injured in the attack. Mostafa’s father described how six teenage girls brutally punched his daughter several times during the attack, the Independent previously reported.
The incident took place near a bus stop on Parliament Street, Nottingham at 8 pm.
Prosecutor Luke Blackburn said at Nottingham Crown Court: “There was not any legally reliable and safe link between what these defendants did and her tragic death.”
After presenting to the court the events of the attack on Moustafa, prosecutor Blackburn stated that the six suspects were guilty of affray rather than a more serious charge.
“It is a case of hostility, but not a case of hostility with a racial element,” Blackburn stated.
The three attackers Mariah Fraser, Britania Hunter and a 16-year-old girl whose name was not mentioned appeared yesterday in court. The prosecutor clarified that Moustafa and her friend Pablo Jawara got on a bus attempting to escape the attack.
The six assaulters followed them upstairs on the bus. Jawara did his best to defend his friend Moustafa by standing in front of the attackers without resorting violence.
“Footage shows how Miss Moustafa looked frightened, passive and, towards the end, obviously unwell,” Blackburn added, noting that the atmosphere was fueled by aggression and violence due to the frightening language used.
Moustafa’s parents, who attended at the court yesterday, noticeably broke down while watching the footage, which showed their daughter collapsing after being rigorously punched several times.
One of the attackers told Moustafa, “I have got beef with you,” in addition to telling one of the attackers that she wanted to “cut” the Egyptian student. However, the prosecutor did not see a certain link between the Egyptian victim’s death and the belligerent fight which took place on the bus.
The other three teenage assaulters will be sentenced by the end of this month.
Only three of the offenders, 19-year-old Mariah Fraser, 18-year-old Britania Hunter, and the 16-year-old girl were called upon for a hearing in court, where they declared their involvement in Mostafa’s assault before the judge on April 16.
The other three admitted affray last year.
The senseless attack sparked public outrage, especially in Egypt, which prompted the Egyptian Embassy in the UK to demand that whoever was involved in the racist attack be penalized.
Moustafa’s family was not satisfied with the charges. The victim’s father believes that the charges were weak in light of the presence of strong evidence demonstrating that the attackers deserve a harsher punishment.
