Egypt arrests donkey butchers
2008-03-31 14:03
Cairo - Two Cairo butchers have been arrested for allegedly passing off donkey, cat and dog carcasses as beef, a security official says.
Mohammed Mahmud Khalifa, 35, was caught red-handed as he butchered a donkey he had found by the roadside in a street in the densely packed Cairo district of Bulaq-Dakrur, the official said.
He confessed to collecting carcasses from around Cairo and selling their meat to Wasfi Sawiris, 53, for five Egyptian pounds (about R7.5) a kilo, a tenth of the normal price for beef.
Sawiris then allegedly grounded the meat up with spices to disguise the taste before selling it to local restaurants.
It was not clear how long the men had been plying their illegal trade. More than 1 700kg meat was found in Sawiris's shop, mostly donkey but also including cat, dog and horse meat.
Under Islamic law it was forbidden to eat the meat of any carnivore or of any animal that had not been slaughtered in the traditional way.
Rampant inflation had hit the cost of food staples in Egypt in recent months, making meat even less accessible for the poor.
About 40% of Egyptians lived on or near the poverty line of two dollars a day, according to the World Bank.
- SAPA