Cairo’s Criminal Court, held in the Fifth District, brought down the curtain on one of the most high-profile drug production and promotion cases to capture public attention in recent times, handing down harsh sentences to producer Sara Khalifa and 27 other defendants.
In the case of drug production, the court sentenced Sarah Khalifa and 12 other defendants to death by hanging, 9 defendants to life imprisonment, and the rest of the defendants were sentenced to different punishments.
In August last year, the court referred the documents of Sarah Khalifa and 12 other defendants to the Mufti of the Republic to obtain a legal opinion on the death sentence before a September 5 hearing in the case involving 28 defendants.
Accusation of creating a drug-producing gang
The case is pending after the public prosecutor referred Sarah Khalifa and 27 other defendants to the New Cairo Criminal Court after accusing them of forming an organized criminal group that specialized in importing materials used in the production of narcotics and manufacturing them for the purposes of trafficking and promotion.
The charges also included possession and possession of firearms and ammunition without a license, and investigations and local reports indicated that more than 750 kilograms of narcotics and raw materials used in their production were seized, in addition to equipment and tools related to the manufacturing process.
According to the investigation, roles were distributed among the accused as some of them were responsible for importing raw materials, others had roles related to manufacturing and promotional operations, one of the properties was used to store raw materials and manufacture narcotics.
The accused is talking about deportation from Dubai
At one of the court sessions, one of the defendants spoke in front of the court, who explained that he was 26 years old and was facing such a situation for the first time.
The accused said that the incident started while he was at his residence in the Emirate of Dubai, noting that police forces raided his residence and conducted a search, and testified in court that no narcotics were found in his possession.
He added that he was taken to a police station before being deported to Egypt via Sphinx Airport and then transferred to the competent investigative authorities to complete legal procedures and investigate the case.
Another decision in the case of indecent assault
In a separate case, the Cairo Criminal Court, sitting in the New Cairo Court, ruled against Sara Khalifa on charges of indecently assaulting her driver. He was sentenced to 3 years in prison, and the other defendant was sentenced to 5 years in prison, with the confiscation of his phone.
During his plea in court, the prosecution said the accused stripped the victim of her clothes in an incident it described as an attack on her sanctity.
The prosecution explained that Sarah Khalifa admitted the details of the incident during the public prosecutor’s investigation, while the victim remained in her testimony, adding that the accused used forms of torture against her.
The prosecution also accused Sarah Khalifa of appearing to others to be different from her reality, noting that according to the investigation, she presented to the court her role in framing the other defendants and their connection to the assault and physical and psychological abuse of the victim.
Sarah Khalifa’s defense maintains her innocence
In the drug manufacturing case, the defense of Sara Khalifa and the defendants argued that a number of the evidence presented in the investigation was incorrect and requested that the record of the charges related to the seized drugs be changed, on the basis that the decision of the head of the Egyptian Narcotics Division regarding the drug schedule was unconstitutional.
The defense also argues that a phone call attributed to one of its clients is not probative, explaining that the call included in the records is about private real estate business and is not related to the charges in the trial.
The defense also pointed out that a search of the defendants’ phones did not reveal, as he submitted to the court, any content or recording of their involvement in the crime, given that there was no convincing technical or physical evidence in the case files to support his clients.
He also claimed that the defendants did not use narcotic substances and demanded that the investigation be invalidated due to their frivolity and their reliance, according to the description of the defense, on statements sent that are not supported by certain evidence.
The judgments in the two cases were handed down after multiple sessions where the charges, evidence and defense arguments were discussed, and the legal effect of each decision remains subject to appeal procedures and methods established under Egyptian law.
The Cairo Criminal Court, convened in the Fifth Settlement, brought the curtain down on one of the most high-profile drug production and trafficking cases to gain public attention in recent times, handing down harsh sentences for producer Sara Khalifa and 27 other defendants. The court hearings also witnessed a verdict in another case involving a man accused of assaulting his driver.
In the case of drug production, the court sentenced Sarah Khalifa and 12 other defendants to death by hanging, 9 defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment, and the rest of the defendants were sentenced to various punishments.
The court referred Sarah Khalifa and 12 other defendants’ papers in August to the Grand Mufti of the Republic for a legal opinion on the death sentence, before a hearing was scheduled for September 5 to pronounce the verdict on the 28 defendants.
Accusation of creating a drug-producing gang
The case began with the arraignment of Sara Khalifa and 27 other defendants at the Cairo Criminal Court, after they were accused of forming an organized crime group that specialized in the importation and production of materials used in the production of narcotic substances for the purpose of trafficking and promotion.
The charges also included possession and possession of firearms and ammunition without a license, and according to the investigation and local reports, more than 750 kilograms of narcotic substances and raw materials used in their production, as well as equipment and tools related to the production processes, were seized.
According to the investigation, the roles were divided between the accused, some were responsible for bringing in the raw materials and others were involved in the production and promotion, using one of the properties to store the raw materials and manufacture the narcotics.
The accused is talking about deportation from Dubai
At one of the court sessions, one of the defendants spoke in front of the court, who explained that he is 26 years old and is facing a similar situation for the first time.
The accused stated that the incident began while he was at his residence in the Emirate of Dubai and noted that the police force raided his residence and conducted a search and, according to his testimony before the court, confirmed that no narcotics were found in his possession.
He added that they were taken to a police station before being deported to Egypt via Sphinx Airport, and then transferred to relevant investigative authorities to complete legal procedures and be questioned in the case.
Another decision on the assault case
In a separate case, the Cairo Criminal Court, which convened in the New Cairo Court, ruled against Sara Khalifa on charges of assaulting her driver, sentencing her to 3 years in prison, while the other defendant was sentenced to 5 years, confiscating the phone involved in the case.
In the pleading submitted to the court, the prosecutor’s office stated that the accused stripped the victim of his clothes, and called the incident an attack on the sanctity of his body.
The prosecution explained that Sara Khalifa admitted the details of the incident during the prosecution’s investigation, and the victim kept her testimony, adding that according to the complaint, the accused used forms of torture on her.
The prosecution also accused Sarah Khalifa of denying her true nature to others, indicating that the investigation presented to the court revealed her role in leading a group that included other defendants and their involvement in the incident of assaulting the victim and abusing her physically and psychologically.
Sarah Khalifa’s defense insists on innocence
During the drug production trial, Sara Khalifa’s defense and the defendants argued the validity of several pieces of evidence presented in the investigation.
The defense also argued that a phone call from one of their clients does not constitute evidence of involvement in the case, explaining that the call included in the evidence relates to a private real estate business and is unrelated to the charges in the trial.
The defense side also noted that by looking at the defendants’ phones, no evidence of their participation in the crime was revealed, given that there is no convincing technical or material evidence in the case file that incriminates their clients.
They also argued that the accused did not use narcotic substances and requested that the investigation be annulled based on frivolousness and the defense’s description of unsubstantiated statements that are not supported by convincing evidence.
The judgments in both cases follow multiple sessions where the charges, evidence and defense appeals are discussed, and the legal consequences of each decision are subject to the procedures and methods of appeal provided for in Egyptian law.
