Prosecutor General Talaat Abdallah on Wednesday challenged the Cairo Criminal Court’s order to release former Information Minister Anas al-Fiqqi.
Last September, Fiqqi was sentenced to seven years in prison for squandering public funds, but the Court of Cassation overturned the ruling and ordered a retrial.
The Cairo court ruled that he must be released unless he is a suspect in another case, as he has been detained for the maximum legal time and is currently in prison without legal basis.
The Court of Cassation is expected to set an urgent hearing date at the Cairo Criminal Court to consider Abdallah’s challenge.
Fiqqi had been found guilty of granting broadcasting rights for Premier League football games to private satellite channels free of charge, costing the state LE1.89 million in losses from 2009-2011.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
