An Egyptian court ruled that fugitive contractor Mohamed Ali, currently residing in Spain, be imprisoned for three years with a bail of LE 200,000 and a fine of LE1.35 million.
The ruling came against the backdrop of the trial of 24 defendants, including the partners of Ali in Case #1530 of 2020.
The prosecution has charged the defendants from the first to the tenth with planning a gathering in September 2019 that would endanger public peace and which was formed to commit terrorist crimes, including assaulting people and influencing public authority men to use force and violence.
Ali, known for his criticism towards President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s regime, announced his retirement from politics in 2020 to return return to art and business, after his call to protest on the January 25 revolution’s ninth anniversary at the time failed.
In a video on his Facebook page, Ali said: “Today was a determinate day for me. Maybe my vision and my view are wrong … There has been no response on the street.”
He added: “I apologize very much to the Egyptian people. The answer today was clear. It’s possible that I was maybe wrong and you are right. You see the country rightly administered and the people approve of the regime. The most important thing is that you remain satisfied and happy.”
“I love Egypt and love the people of Egypt. Today, I will close my page and will return to my job in business and acting. I will not get involved in politics again, you know what is right for you. I had the answer today and I’m sorry if I kept you busy recently,” he said.
Egypt’s Tax Evasion Prosecution referred Ali in November 2019 to an urgent criminal trial on charges of tax evasion.
