Kleptomaniac Cuts Off Both His Hands So He Can’t Ever Steal Again

An Egyptian man sliced off both his hands by placing them in the path of a speeding train. He took this drastic action to overcome his stealing addiction (kleptomania).

Ali Afifi, 28, decided to wreak this drastic punishment on himself because he was disgusted with his inability to control his habitual stealing habit.

Afifi severed both his hands in his self-inflicted solution. His decision was probably based on the Islamic teaching of Sharia law.

He said that he started his stealing addiction at a young age. In the beginning, he used to take his friend’s lunches at primary school. He then began taking items from shops, and more recently he was taking people’s mobile phones and gold jewelery.

He claimed that he gave the money he made to children and poor families.

But, at a certain point, he could not cope with the guilt, so he decided to cut off his hands to put an end to his compulsive behavior.

Interpretation of the Islamic legal system by Muslims varies between cultures. However, it is accepted in some countries that repeated stealing is punishable by cutting off the hand.

Usually the case is heard in a Sharia court where Islamic jurists would issue a decision. But Mr. Afifi, who comes from from the central Nile delta region of Tanta, Egypt, decided he knew what his fate should be according to the Sharia law on stealing.

In Egypt, the courts have not permitted judicial amputation for many years, although last year there was a move in the Egyptian parliament to change that.

Amputation for repeated stealing is still practiced in countries such as Iran, Saudi Arabia, and northern Nigeria.

But Mr. Alfifi simply couldn’t wait for the new government legislation, so he took the law into his own hands – literally!

Photo Credit: REX/Abdallah/nurphoto