Girl who set fire to Mahdia dorm faces 20th murder charge

More than a month after a Mahdia schoolgirl was charged with 19 murders because of the fire she allegedly set to the Mahdia Secondary female dormitory, she was back in court on Tuesday to face an additional charge.

The development comes after Sherana Daniels succumbed to her injuries on May 30^th, becoming the 20^th victim of the tragedy.

She appeared at the Mahdia Magistrate’s Court before Senior Magistrate Sunil Scarce, where the charges were re-read to her after the particulars were amended to include Daniels death.

The accused was not required to plea to the additional charge and was further remanded to the Juvenile Holding Centre.

The matter was adjourned to July 20 for further report and additional statements.

The 20 children– 19 girls and one boy- died in the devastating fire started which started after 23:00 hrs on Sunday, May 21.

The fire continued for some three hours before it was controlled.

Another 29 girls were injured in the fire. Many of them have received the necessary treatment for their physical injuries and are receiving mental health support.

Two girls were critically injured; one of them, a 13-year-old, was flown to New York for critical care. She is said to be recovering well.