Egypt court overturns Mubarak jail sentence for graft
Court orders a retrial in the sole case still pending against ousted strongman
In this file photo, ousted Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak sits behind bars during his retrial at the Police Academy in Cairo on April 15, 2013. PHOTO: AFP
CAIRO:
An Egyptian court on Tuesday overturned a three-year prison sentence against ousted strongman Hosni Mubarak on corruption charges and ordered a retrial in the sole case still pending against him.
In November, another court had dropped murder charges against the 86-year-old former leader over the deaths of protesters during the 2011 uprising that ended his three decades of autocratic rule.
A lower court had handed down the jail sentence against Mubarak in May last year after convicting him of embezzling about $14 million earmarked for the maintenance of presidential palaces.
It had also handed down four-year jail sentences against the toppled leader's sons, Alaa and Gamal.
The Court of Cassation did not specify whether Mubarak was a free man following its judgement.
But his lawyer Farid al-Deeb told AFP that his client ought to go free as he "has already served" three years in prison.
An Egyptian court on Tuesday overturned a three-year prison sentence against ousted strongman Hosni Mubarak on corruption charges and ordered a retrial in the sole case still pending against him.
In November, another court had dropped murder charges against the 86-year-old former leader over the deaths of protesters during the 2011 uprising that ended his three decades of autocratic rule.
A lower court had handed down the jail sentence against Mubarak in May last year after convicting him of embezzling about $14 million earmarked for the maintenance of presidential palaces.
It had also handed down four-year jail sentences against the toppled leader's sons, Alaa and Gamal.
The Court of Cassation did not specify whether Mubarak was a free man following its judgement.
But his lawyer Farid al-Deeb told AFP that his client ought to go free as he "has already served" three years in prison.