Judge reviews proceedings in the trial of Samy Mahran who is accused of making over EGP 20 million in illicit gains. (DNE/ Mohamed Omar) Farouk Hosni, who served as Minister of Culture under toppled President Hosni Mubarak, has been acquitted of graft charges, in a busy day for high profile cases. Hosni was accused of making around EGP 10m in illicit gains between 1987 and 2011, by abusing his position in power. The charges were brought against Hosni by the Illicit Gains Authority and he was acquitted by the Giza Criminal Court. In the trial of the notorious Sabry Nakhnoukh, who was dubbed the ‘prince of thugs' by the press, proceedings were postponed until 9 January. Nakhnoukh is being tried by the Alexandria Criminal Court, for possession of narcotics and firearms. Ahmed Helmy, a top official in the Ministry of Interior, said Nakhnoukh has not committed any previous crimes, at least not ones that have been proven, according to state-run Ahram. Helmy alleged that Nakhnoukh has played a role in supporting some members of parliament during the Mubarak era by providing them with ‘thugs' during elections to assist their campaigns. The North Cairo Criminal Court postponed the trial of five defendants accused of intentionally harming the financial interests of Egypt Air. All five defendants showed up to the session and the testimonies of 10 witnesses were given, including former Minister of Civil Aviation, Hussein Masoud. The defendants are accused of causing Egypt Air losses of a little less than $ 10m, an equivalent of over EGP 60m. Their trial has been postponed to 5 February. The Cairo Criminal Court has decided to release on bail Osama El-Sheikh, former head of the Egyptian Radio and Television Union, a man considered a member of the old guard. El-Sheikh is being re-tried for squandering public funds. Finally, the trial of Samy Mahran, who is accused of making over EGP 20m in illicit gains, has been put off until 8 January. Mahran served as secretary general of the People's Assembly during Mubarak's rule.
