RedSea4u

Wow

Was I alone in thinking he was going to 'walk' ???????


*STUNNED*


Now's the time folks to get out and buy up company shares

An Egyptian billionaire and former top political figure has been sentenced to death in Cairo for the 2008 murder of Lebanese pop star Suzanne Tamim.

Hisham Talaat Moustafa was found guilty of paying $2m to an ex-policeman to kill the singer. The killer Muhsin Sukkari was also sentenced to hang.

Ms Tamim reportedly broke off a secret love affair with Moustafa months before she was stabbed to death in Dubai.

The tale of sex, politics, money and show business gripped the Arab world.

The courtroom descended into chaos after the judge read out a short statement and ordered the sentences referred to the religious authorities for confirmation - as is normal in Egypt.

The defendants looked shocked at the verdict and relatives of Hisham Talaat Moustafa jostled with reporters to prevent them photographing his reaction.

Female relatives burst into tears and one of them fainted in the pandemonium.

Lawyer Samir Shishtawi called the verdict "severe", adding: "I want to assure Talaat Moustafa's family that this verdict will be overturned by the appeals court".

Newly married

The indictment had accused the security guard who worked at a hotel owned by Moustafa of killing Suzanne Tamim, 30, with a knife at her luxury Dubai apartment last July.

Suzanne Tamim rose to fame in a TV talent show in the 1990s

Clothes found at the apartment carried his DNA, and he was identified after being caught on film by a security camera.

Telephone conversations between Sukkari and Moustafa also formed part of the prosecution's case.

The indictment had accused Moustafa, former head of the Talaat Moustafa Group property empire, of participating in the murder through "incitement, agreement and assistance".

The court heard that he had ordered the killing after twice-married Ms Tamim ended their relationship and married an Iraqi kick-boxing champion, Riyad al-Azzawi, whom she had met in London.

Sukkari then followed Suzanne Tamim to the United Arab Emirates and staked out her flat. He gained entry by saying he worked for the building owner and killed her as she opened her front door.

Elite

As well as serving in the upper house of the Egyptian parliament, Hisham Talaat Moustafa is known to have been close to President Hosni Mubarak's politically powerful son Gamal.

He sat on the ruling National Democratic Party's policy committee.

Members of the Egyptian elite are often viewed in the country as being above the law, and there was massive public interest in the case.

The Dubai authorities applied such pressure on the Egyptians to bring the case to trial that he was eventually stripped of his parliamentary immunity.

But reporting of the case was banned in Egypt after the opening statements - a ruling which brought sharp criticism from the opposition.

Reporters from Tamim's home area in the Lebanese capital Beirut said her family was "grateful for the verdict".

Suzanne Tamim had risen to stardom throughout the Middle East as the winner of a pop idol contest in Lebanon in 1996.

But her career was marred by reports of a troubled private life.

I expected the hit man to go down but not him, that really is a surprise!!

Me too can't believe he was convicted being Gamal's pal and all

I was just watching the footage of the verdict and 2 things popped into my mind.
On a capital murder charge you would expect a suspect to be held in remand but during the trial should he be kept in a courtroom in a cage???

I mean isn't the defendant innocent till proved guilty here in Egypt?
Is he guilty until proven innocent according to this system of law. Is it French by the way?
It just seems a bit much to see a defendant kept in a cage in the courtroom during the trial. I mean unless he is Hannibal Lecter why the cage


Second thing I was thinking.
You hear about the 'blood money' thing here in the ME don't you? . Now suppose Suzanne Tamim's family asked for blood money instead of execution.

I was thinking about his father Talat Mustapha the guy worth 1.3 billion.

If he had the choice to save his son from execution and pay every single cent of the family's wealth to do that. Do you think he would?
I mean literally every cent. bankrupt, destitute, broke, hand it all to the Tamim's?

Your son's life or the money.

Do you think he would allow his holdings and shares and businesses and off shores to be given in return for his sons life and if he did what a story that would make


It would be interesting to see a 'blood money' amount not decided by a court or family, but by the deceased's family and no limit to what they can ask for

The blood money idea could be interesting couldn't it? How much is your son worth?

I didn't think he was going to walk and I'm not surprised that he didn't.

Now it all hinges on the appeal, but I can't decide yet how that one's going to go.

I thought all people in the criminal court were put in the cage - thought it was only the civil courts that were cageless

I saw this news report and was very shocked.

Stunning girl, may she rest x

New Gal

If you saw half of these Lebanese artistes without the 'warpaint' and photoshop you'd have nightmares
You just have to go to an Egyptian beauty parlour when they are doing 'bridal' wedding make up.



White almost Geisha slap is literally troweled on the face, with usually the neck etc missed completely and they use the SAME!! make up and the same sponges for all the customers!!!


I read somewhere that the appeal here in Egypt is not to allow a review of the evidence or lack of, it is a review of court procedure only.
To make sure the court proceedings and judgement were entirely legal.

If it goes ahead it will send shock waves to all the corrupt businessmen who 'think' they have parliamentary immunity, or that being the friend of the Prez's son will save you.

I guess the mufti will have to agree to the sentence according to Sharia law.