A criminal court in Egypt has sentenced five people to death for damaging a petroleum pipeline which resulted the death of nine people in November, local news outlet Egypt Today reported. Five others were sentenced to 25 years in prison.
The blaze occured in the northern governorate of Beheira, and resulted in the injury of 11 people, who had a burns ranging in degree, covering as much as 50% of their bodies.
The investigations found that the defendants were planning to siphon petroleum products from the pipeline over an area that crossed private property. They rented the land in October, dug down to the pipeline, and connected it to smaller pipes and a stopcock.
On 13 November, while installing another stopcock, one person punctured a pipe, leading to a leak. They fled the scene, and the petrol mixed with a wastewater channel, resulting in a blaze.
