Lawyer Ali Ayoub turned himself in Sunday to the Khusus Police Department to serve a three-year prison sentence after being convicted of “insulting and defaming the Minister of Culture Gehan Zaki,” his wife, lawyer Hend Farahat, told Al Manassa.
Ayoub’s surrender came after the Hadayek El-Qobba Misdemeanor Appeals Court upheld the sentence on May 21, leaving an appeal before the Court of Cassation as his remaining legal route.
On Saturday evening, Ayoub announced on Facebook that he had decided to turn himself in to avoid any raid on his home or office and to protect his family.
Ayoub said he had authorized his defense team to take the necessary steps to file an appeal before the Court of Cassation and submit the grounds for the appeal, adding, “I have full confidence in the security authorities to help me complete the reconciliation initiative with the honorable culture minister, especially as we approach Eid Al-Adha.”
The appeals ruling followed the Cairo Court of Appeal’s rejection of a recusal request filed by Ayoub’s defense team, which accused the original court panel of “violating the right to defense.”
Ayoub was arrested Feb. 26 over the complaint filed by the minister, as his wife announced at the time. His defense team condemned the incident, saying the arrest warrant issued by the Public Prosecution over the minister’s complaint was invalid.
Although the Public Prosecution ordered Ayoub’s release on bail of 50,000 Egyptian pounds (about $950) at the time, the order was delayed for more than 10 days despite the bail being paid, according to Ayoub in a post published on his wife’s Facebook account on March 9. “I am home now after a grueling journey and after being transferred from the Hadayek El-Qobba Police Department to the May transfers facility, then to the Banha transfers facility, then to Shibin El-Qanater over absentia rulings involving similar names,” he said.
On March 5, the Public Prosecution referred Ayoub to trial before the Hadayek El-Qobba Misdemeanor Court, with an urgent hearing set for March 8. At that hearing, the court heard arguments from the minister’s lawyers and Ayoub’s defense team and set March 15 for a verdict. The court convicted Ayoub of insulting and defaming the culture minister through Facebook posts, sentencing him to three years in prison, setting bail at 30,000 pounds (about $550), and fining him 300,000 pounds.
According to the case investigation, Ayoub said after Zaki was appointed minister that she had been accused of antiquities trafficking and had previously used her influence to secure her release. He also criticized her for holding foreign nationalities and working for international institutions in violation of Egyptian law.
