Tamara ElGammal (submitted)
A small contingent from Newfoundland is in Alexandria, Egypt in an attempt to reunite a little girl with her mother.
Bouchra Marbouhi’s 5-year-old daughter Tamara was taken from St. John’s to Egypt by her father Ahmed, despite an order requiring both parents to keep the child in St. John’s.
An arrest warrant for the child’s father, Ahmed Mohamed Shafik Abelfat Elgammal, has been issued by the RNC for abduction.
St. John’s residents have rallied around Tamara’s mother and raised enough funds to travel to Alexandria to try to locate the little girl. Kathy Porter and Elyse McGrath have been in Egypt with Bouchra for the last month, but McGrath says, they haven’t had any luck finding the child.
Left to right: Elyse McGrath, Bouchra Marbouhi, Kathy Porter and Shady Abdellatif (submitted photo)
“We did go to his (the father’s) family residence with the police and her lawyer, Mr. Shady Abdellatif” a specialist in child abduction who McGrath says has successfully reunited some 85 children back to their families. “We’re working towards obtaining information to find Tamara.”
McGrath, who is the Chair of Violence Prevention Avalon East, says they’re committed to bringing Tamara back home to St. John’s and they’re thankful for all the support they’ve received from Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
She says Newfoundlanders have donated “so much money” and messages of support through a GoFundMe set up to help with the cause. She says government officials like John Hogan and others, including former premier Andrew Furey and Gabriel Williams with provincial immigration, have also done a lot to assist.
RNC Working with Authorities to Locate Child
The RNC says it is working with, and has been in contact with, the appropriate agencies in an effort to confirm the safety of the child.
The Constabulary says investigations of that nature are “very complex” and involve multiple agencies.
The RNC won’t divulge specific investigative techniques used in their ongoing efforts in order to protect the integrity of the investigation.
It says its priority remains the safety of the child in question.