Rabat – An investigating judge has decided to put Moroccan journalist Omar Radi in custody for his alleged involvement in a “rape case and for receiving funds linked to a foreign agent.”
The public prosecutor at the Court of Appeal in Casablanca announced on Wednesday that the investigating judge decided to place Radi in pretrial detention after initial questioning, according to the prosecutor’s statement as quoted by Morocco’s state media.
The prosecutor said Omar Radi’s detention comes to facilitate a continued investigation on his alleged involvement in the two cases, of “receiving funds linked to a foreign agent and of participation in a violent rape.”
The prosecutor said that a woman had filed a complaint against Radi.
“Based on an investigation that judicial police in Casablanca carried out, the prosecution office transmitted Omar Radi to the investigating judge at the Court of Appeal in Casablanca to investigate the case to determine his alleged involvement in violent rape,” said the same source.
If convicted on rape charges, Omar Radi would face a prison sentence ranging from five to 10 years, in accordance with Article 485 of the penal code.
The prosecutor also cited Article 486. It stipulates that if someone rapes a minor, an incapable person, a person with special needs, a mentally ill person, or a pregnant woman, the penalty ranges from 10 to 20 years in prison.
Radi faces separate charges for “receiving funding from foreign entities” to harm the integrity of the state.
He also faces charges for “engaging with agents of a foreign country to harm Morocco’s diplomacy.”
Moroccan police have summoned Radi several times for his alleged involvement in a case regarding receiving funds from a foreign agent.
Radi has been denying the accusations.
Morocco World News asked Radi on June 23 about the claims that he receives money from foreign entities. Dismissing the allegations, Radi said Moroccan authorities “have nothing” against him.
“Let me ask you this, if the Moroccan authorities have proof that I work for a suspicious source or ‘spying body’ then why was I not arrested so I can give my statements? The authorities have nothing against me,” he claimed.
Omar Radi and Amnesty International
The journalist made international headlines in late June after a report from Amnesty International claimed that Morocco targeted Radi with cyber-spying attacks using Israeli NSO malware.
Morocco’s government strongly rejected the claims, asking the NGO repeatedly to provide evidence to back its accusations.
For the government, Amnesty International has so far failed to provide material evidence to back its report that contains “irresponsible” allegations.
“As it was expected, the NGO did not provide any evidence or response that proves the allegations to date,” the Moroccan government said in a statement at the end of a meeting on July 2.
The government argued that the report’s claims “are in line with the strategy Amnesty International has been employing for years against Morocco’s interests, attempting to undermine the country’s internationally-recognized progress in the field of human rights.”
Read also: MWN Investigation Reveals Amnesty International’s Reckless Double Standards
