Investigation launched after Cairo University staff member shot dead

The suspect, believed to be a colleague of the victim, is still at large

The Cairo University campus. Photo: Wikipedia Commons

An investigation has been launched after a female employee was shot dead by a male colleague inside the Faculty of Antiquities building at Cairo University on Wednesday, according to a statement from the prosecutor general.

The suspect fled the scene after the shooting, which was quickly reported by students, officials told The National.

The motive for the shooting is unknown.

Security footage from the building has been handed over to officials for examination, police officials said.

Officials have closed the building, a youth care facility inside the Faculty of Agriculture, for examinations.

The incident took place a day after another woman was shot dead on a busy street in the affluent east Cairo neighbourhood of Heliopolis on Tuesday evening.

The primary suspect, who is now in police custody, was revealed by investigations to be the woman’s former fiance, who she had refused to go back to.

The suspect was shot in the shoulder by a police officer who saw the incident unfold. He is now in hospital receiving treatment.

Gender-based violent crime is on the increase in Egypt, exacerbated by a combination of tensions arising from traditional gender roles, conservative religious views and poverty.