Court upholds Dubai murder case sentences

An Egyptian tycoon and a former Egyptian police officer who faced retrials in Cairo this week for the murder of Lebanese singer Suzanne Tamim have had their sentences upheld by an Egyptian appeal court, media reports have said.

Former politician and property mogul Hesham Talaat Moustafa will spend 15 years in prison, whilst Mohsin Al-Sukkari’s sentence of life imprisonment was also upheld, Reuters reported.

Moustafa was convicted and sentenced to death by hanging after his first trial in 2009 when he was found guilty of paying ex-cop Al-Sukkari $2m to kill Tamin.

In 2010 the verdict was quashed and a retrial was ordered, reducing Moustafa’s sentence to 15 years in jail. Al-Sukkari, who was also found guilty of the crime, was sentenced to 25 years in jail.

The Egyptian appeal court has since heard a retrial but ruled that both men will continue to serve their lengthy prison terms.

The reason for the second retrial was unknown.

Tamim, who rose to fame after her appearance in an Arabic TV talent contest, was found dead in her Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR) apartment in July 2008, aged 30.

Original reports said her killer had taken just 12 minutes to enter the Rimal 1 building, slit her throat, and leave for Dubai Airport.

Moustafa, a senior member of Egypt's former ruling party, is believed to have ordered her killing after she rejected his marriage proposal.

The former chairman of property firm Talaat Moustafa Group had reportedly begun an affair with the Arabic star after she asked him for help divorcing from her husband, impresario and producer Adel Matouk.

Talaat Moustafa was a member of parliament for the National Democratic Party of ousted President Hosni Mubarak at the time of his original conviction. The case reinforced the belief among many Egyptians that the ruling party was corrupt.