Giza Criminal Court on Tuesday sentenced 40 people to 3-16 years in prison for human trafficking and facilitating illegal migration charges.
Some of the defendants were fined between EGP 2,000-500,000. The defendants can appeal the verdict before the Court of Cassation, the highest Egyptian civil court.
The lawsuit documents indicated that the investigations of the Supreme Public Funds Prosecution reported that an employee in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was involved in the crime.
The defendants are facing accusations of falsifying official documents, bribery, forging government seals, and illegally obtaining an official stamp belonging to a governmental agency.
The court described the defendants as an “organised criminal group,” adding that investigations showed that the defendants used females in prostitution.
Previously, General Prosecutor, Nabil Sadiq, had ordered the referral of 40 defendants to the Criminal Court on charges of forming an organised criminal group which is involved in human trafficking.
According to investigations, some of the defendants were accused of smuggling girls to Arab countries under falsified documents, such as forged marriage contracts.
