Thursday Rants and Rave: #S02EP02 Summer follow ups of Ramy Fahim, the Tates brothers and Saad Lamjard

Hello and welcome back to the Thursday Rants and Rave Podcast.

For some reason, the Thursday Rants and Rave Podcast is back for a second season, inshallah. I hope it will be even better than the first season of the podcast.

There was a delay because of procrastination, as well as working on recording as many episodes as I could. It was more of procrastination than anything, especially with the weather we've had in Egypt, which doesn't encourage you to do anything.

Anyway, my audio rants focusing on crimes, in Arabic, are here.

Tonight, this is what I ranted about in Arabic in the podcast as it is having a comeback.

First, this episode is more of a follow-up episode. It is about the latest updates on the usual suspects in the past few months: Ramy Fahim, the Tates, and Saad Lamjard.

Starting with Ramy Fahim and his trial in California.

If you are just tuning in, let me introduce you to the story of Ramy Mounir Fahim. He was a young Egyptian resident of Irving, California, who found himself facing charges in April 2022 in connection with a murder case involving special circumstances. The charges were related to the fatal stabbing of his co-worker, 23-year-old Griffin Cuomo, and Griffin's roommate, 23-year-old Jonathan Bahm, in their Anaheim apartment.

It's worth noting that Fahim is the eldest son of former Minister of Immigration, Nabila Makram.

In summary, Ramy Fahim is currently confronting eight counts associated with murder, specifically with special circumstances, which could potentially result in a death sentence in California.

It's important to note that Fahim has pleaded not guilty to these charges. He remains in detention, but his summer has been eventful.

In early June, his attorney, the prosecution, and the judge convened a pretrial session to prepare for the upcoming trial and address any outstanding issues.

In August, Ramy Fahim had two preliminary hearings.

A preliminary hearing is a legal proceeding in the American justice system used to determine whether there is probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed and that the accused person is responsible for it.

Ramy Fahim 

It's important to note that a preliminary hearing is not a trial, and the accused person is not obliged to testify. The judge does not make a determination of guilt or innocence during the preliminary hearing.

 However, if the judge finds probable cause, the case will proceed to trial. On the other hand, if the judge concludes that there is no probable cause, the charges will be dismissed.

In this particular case, it appears that the judge found probable cause, and the case advanced to trial.

On Wednesday, another arraignment hearing took place.

Just as a reminder, an arraignment is a legal proceeding in which the defendant is formally charged with a crime and enters a plea of guilty or not guilty in the American justice system. Ramy Fahim has maintained his plea of not guilty.

Looking ahead, the next hearing for Ramy Fahim is scheduled for December 1st, 2023, and it will be another arraignment session.

Interestingly, former Minister Nabila Makram has returned to the media spotlight in the past 48 hours following her interview on MBC Misr with TV host Sherif Amar. During the interview, the former Minister of Immigration mentioned that she visits her son every three months.

She also revealed that her son began to experience psychological suffering at the age of 10 but chose to keep it to himself. Makram shared that her son confided in her, explaining that he decided to keep it to himself because he feared she might suggest, "Let's go to church so we can find a solution" or "You're pretending because you want to go to school." (A typical response from Egyptian parents when a child expresses psychological distress).

It's worth noting that in the interview, Nabila Makram did not mention her son's allegation of being sexually molested by a family relative at that age, as indicated on his Twitter account.

Makram expressed her wish that no mother would have to endure what she is currently going through, a sentiment many can empathize with as it's a parent's worst nightmare.

Meanwhile, Nabila Makram's friend and Ramy Fahim's former boss, Laila Pence, had a successful year despite being sued by the mother of Griffin Cuomo for negligence that allegedly contributed to her son's murder.

Pence continued to be featured in Forbes magazine's annual lists, ranking as the 61st America's Top Wealth Advisor, 1st in Forbes' Best-In-State Wealth Advisors in South California, 5th among America's top Women Advisors, and 1st in Top Women Advisors in State Wealth in South California.

These are the latest updates regarding Ramy Fahim and his trial.

Andrew Tate and the war room of the pimp generals

In early August, the Bucharest Court of Appeals announced the release of Andrew and Tristan Tate, along with two Romanian female accomplices, from house arrest.

This development precedes their trial on charges of human trafficking and rape.

As per the court's statement, they remain under judicial control for a duration of 60 days, from August 4th to October 2nd.

Initially, they were suspects under house arrest pending a criminal investigation for charges related to rape, human trafficking, and the formation of an organized crime group aimed at sexually exploiting women. The Tates and the two Romanian women have denied these charges.

A file photo of Andrew Tate earlier this year in Bucharest. AFP

The indictment submitted to the Bucharest court outlines that the four defendants established an organized criminal group in 2021 with the intention of engaging in human trafficking within Romania, as well as in other countries, including the US and the UK. 

The indictment identifies seven alleged victims who, it claims, were recruited by the Tate brothers through false promises of love and marriage.

Tate was initially arrested in Bucharest, the capital of Romania, in December 2022. He and his brother remained in police custody until March.

If the Tates believe they'll find safety in the UK, they might want to reconsider.

During their house arrest, Tate received legal papers in June from lawyers representing four alleged victims who have accused him of rape and sexual assault.

These four women, in their late 20s and early 30s, are pursuing civil proceedings against the social media influencer and former kickboxer for alleged offences that occurred between 2013 and 2016 while he was residing in the UK.

Andrew Tate reentered the media spotlight last week when a BBC investigative report unveiled the workings of his infamous "War Room."

This premium Telegram channel for men, which charges approximately $8,000 for access, allegedly taught men how to manipulate socially isolated women into sex work, based on 12,000 messages exchanged in just 13 months.

About a month ago, the investigative news website Belling Cat delved further into the War Room and its infamous leaders, including the Tates.

Tate firmly denied any wrongdoing within his "War Room."

Saad Lamjarred and temporary freedom in Paris

Saad Lamjarred is back on the scene and on the music charts after releasing a few songs in recent months. He was found guilty of raping a young woman in a hotel room in Paris in October 2016 and sentenced to six years in prison on February 25, 2023.

Well, here is what happened with the infamous Moroccan singer who is still supported by the Arab Music Industry as well as the Royal Palace in Morocco unfortunately.

Saad Lamjarred, a Moroccan singer, was found guilty of raping a young woman in a hotel room in Paris in October 2016 and sentenced to six years in prison on February 25th, 2023. He has appealed the verdict.

Saad and his family including his wife after his release in April 2023 in Paris.
Lamjarred's Instagram

Lamjarred is currently free on bail, but he is prohibited from leaving France. His next hearing is scheduled for September 19, 2023.

If you think that Lamjarred is not active, think again because he released two singles in the summer including a duo with an Indian singer who probably did not know about his ordeal !!

I am quite amazed at how Saad Lamjarred is treated in France, a  country that we all agree that not so friendly anymore to Muslim or Arab citizens but Lamjarred is a rich Moroccan residing right now in a rich area in Paris, not in the suburbs after all !!

We will see what will happen to Lamajarred and his fate in the upcoming months.

That’s what I ranted about in Arabic.

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I want to thank all those amazing listeners who are kind enough to listen to my rants in Arabic and the amazing readers who are kind enough to read those very long posts in English.