Canadian anti-crime researcher will go on trial in Algeria

A Canadian researcher who has been detained in Algeria will go on trial on the 8th of August. 

Researcher Raouf Farrah has been detained in North Africa since February on charges that he published secret information and accepted money to commit offences against public order, according to The Canadian Press, July 25. 

Mr. Farrah will face his charges next week, in the city of Constantine, located in the east of Algeria. His lawyer stressed that he is innocent. 

Farrah’s lawyer Koucelia Zerguine said, “He didn’t commit the two crimes that he has been charged with, during the inquiry, we submitted all the material evidence that refutes the charges.” 

Raouf Farrah’s 67-year-old father was arrested with his son whilst the pair were visiting family in the North African country. Sebti Farrah (Raouf’s father) was released on bail in mid-April due to his poor health. He was arrested on similar charges, receiving funds to commit offences against public order. 

Raouf’s lawyer has stated that his client has also been struggling with his health. Since his incarceration, the Algerian-born Canadian researcher has been receiving physical therapy for a knee injury that has worsened during his time in jail. 

Born in Algeria, 36-year-old Farrah moved to Canada at the age of 18 and has an interest in security and migration issues in the North African region. He has been in jail since the 20th of February.

Director of the North Africa and the Sahel Observatory at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, Mark Micallef, where Farrah worked as a senior analyst, claimed that his colleague was in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

Global Affairs Canada is aware of the situation. “Canadian officials are providing consular assistance to the concerned individual and their family via its embassy in Algiers and headquarters in Ottawa”, they reported. The department’s spokesman Jérémie Bérubé wrote in an email, adding that no further information could be provided due to privacy reasons.   

THE CANADIAN PRESS