The son of an Egyptian business tycoon has been sent for trial on manslaughter charges after a car crash in which a woman died on a Red Sea motorway.
Prosecution said Haitham Kamel Abu Ali was speeding and driving on the wrong side of the road while under the influence of alcohol and hashish.
The collision on the evening January 22 killed interior designer Mai Ishaq and injured her Uber driver.
Mr Abu Ali, whose father owns resorts on the Red Sea coast, also faces charges of deliberately driving on the wrong side of the road and possessing hashish, the prosecution said.
A date for trial has yet to be set. If convicted, Mr Abu Ali could be sent to prison for seven years.
Ishaq, who would have been 43 this week, was travelling between the resorts of Sahl Hasheeh and El Gouna when the crash happened, a friend of her family told The National.
She was killed instantly and her driver suffered minor injuries. Mr Abu Ali was unhurt.
The case has been discussed on social media networks in the past week.
On television talk shows, hosts applauded what they regarded as the swift action of police and prosecutors.
Sensing that Mr Abu Ali's family wealth and prestige might become an issue, some hosts told viewers that the justice system would decide.
“Egypt is a nation that respects the law,” said talk show host Khairy Ramadan on Saturday night.
"Where else in this world can you see police and prosecutors acting so swiftly? Who can possibly interfere in police and prosecution work?”
Ishaq’s friend denied that blood money would become an issue.
A veteran criminal lawyer said such a payment would not secure an acquittal or mitigate any sentence.
“Mai’s family is aware that the family of the accused will at some point get in touch but that had not happened," the friend said. "Talk of blood money is pure fiction."
The case caused a stir in Egypt about wealth, influence and their relationship to criminal justice.
Amar Hassan, a sociologist and author, said that issue did not mean a corrupt judiciary, but it pointed to the ability of the rich to hire the country’s most effective lawyers.
"Like everywhere else in the world, we in Egypt have a class of businessmen who can, through their large resources, defend their own very well," Mr Hassan told The National.
“But this is the age of social media, where nothing can stay a secret, and social media is a source of pressure on authorities to allow the law to take its course.”
Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Results
5pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m; Winner: Faiza, Sandro Paiva (jockey), Ali Rashid Al Raihe (trainer).
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7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m; Winner: AF Ashras, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 2,200m; Winner: Somoud, Richard Mullen, Ahmed Al Mehairbi.
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Strait of Hormuz
Fujairah is a crucial hub for fuel storage and is just outside the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route linking Middle East oil producers to markets in Asia, Europe, North America and beyond.
The strait is 33 km wide at its narrowest point, but the shipping lane is just three km wide in either direction. Almost a fifth of oil consumed across the world passes through the strait.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the strait, a move that would risk inviting geopolitical and economic turmoil.
Last month, Iran issued a new warning that it would block the strait, if it was prevented from using the waterway following a US decision to end exemptions from sanctions for major Iranian oil importers.
Retirement funds heavily invested in equities at a risky time
Pension funds in growing economies in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East have a sharply higher percentage of assets parked in stocks, just at a time when trade tensions threaten to derail markets.
Retirement money managers in 14 geographies now allocate 40 per cent of their assets to equities, an 8 percentage-point climb over the past five years, according to a Mercer survey released last week that canvassed government, corporate and mandatory pension funds with almost $5 trillion in assets under management. That compares with about 25 per cent for pension funds in Europe.
The escalating trade spat between the US and China has heightened fears that stocks are ripe for a downturn. With tensions mounting and outcomes driven more by politics than economics, the S&P 500 Index will be on course for a “full-scale bear market” without Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts, Citigroup’s global macro strategy team said earlier this week.
The increased allocation to equities by growth-market pension funds has come at the expense of fixed-income investments, which declined 11 percentage points over the five years, according to the survey.
Hong Kong funds have the highest exposure to equities at 66 per cent, although that’s been relatively stable over the period. Japan’s equity allocation jumped 13 percentage points while South Korea’s increased 8 percentage points.
The money managers are also directing a higher portion of their funds to assets outside of their home countries. On average, foreign stocks now account for 49 per cent of respondents’ equity investments, 4 percentage points higher than five years ago, while foreign fixed-income exposure climbed 7 percentage points to 23 per cent. Funds in Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Taiwan are among those seeking greater diversification in stocks and fixed income.
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ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
