The Cairo Criminal Court on Monday sentenced former agriculture minister Salah Helal to 10 years in prison and ordered that he pay a fine of $113,000.
Helal had been charged with accepting bribes while in public office.
The former minister was sentenced along with his former deputy Mohey El-Din Qaddah. However, Qaddah received a fine of EGP 500,000, or about $56,000. Two other defendants were acquitted from the trial.
In September 2015, the prosecution released a statement detailing the amount of money ministerial officials received as “presents” in exchange for a personal favor for a businessman.
The favour, in the case of Helal, pertained to issuing official documents concerning an agricultural holding of 2,500 acres in Wadi Al-Natrun.
Helal and Qaddah received varied forms of bribery, notably a house worth nearly $1 million in a residential compound in 6 October City, $26,000 worth of clothes, and travel expenses for 16 family members to perform the Hajj pilgrimage at a cost of nearly $16,000 per person.
The prosecution also details several other services provided to the two defendants: $15,700 membership to the Al-Ahly sporting club, $1,600 on an Iftar ceremony held at a hotel, and $1,240 for two mobile phones.
Prosecution authorities imposed a ‘media gag’ in the case which is still being enforced, excepting official statements issued by the prosecution authority.
