Mubarak’s Sons, Heikal Accused Over Manipulation Charges
An official source said that general prosecutor approved referring Ayman Fathy Hussein Soliman, Ahmed Fathy Hussein Soliman, Yasser Soliman El Malawany, Ahmed Naeem Ahmed Badr, Hassan Mohamed Hassanein Heikal, Gamal Mubarak, Alaa Mubarak (sons of ousted president Hosni Mubarak), Amr Mohamed El Qady and Hussein Lotfy EL Sherbiny to Cairo Criminal Court on charges of graft in selling Al Watany Bank of Egypt (AWB).
Prosecution’s investigations revealed that the defendants got EGP 2,051,028,648 and that they violated laws of capital market and Central Bank of Egypt through buying a controlling stake in AWB from young investors through closed investment funds and selling them without informing Egypt’s stock market.
The defendants veiled their identities through business clusters and closed investment funds in Cyprus and some British islands. They bought and sold the shares and then transferred their profits outside the country. Besides, they veiled crucial information about selling the Bank from other shareholders, violating principles of transparency and equality among shareholders.
The accused acquired a controlling stake in AWB with the least prices and then gradually acquired 80% of the Bank’s shares through investment fund managers, financial portfolios and brokerage companies. Afterwards, they controlled the Bank’s board and became representatives of the largest shareholders.
They assigned two divisions subordinate to them to promote for selling the Bank by virtue of the agreement signed between them in 27/12/2006, which was not known for other shareholders. Afterwards, they, their partners and the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth defendants got the previously said money which is the price difference between the purchasing price and selling price of these shares.
Gamal Mubarak was accused of cooperating with public servants over graft charges as they received EGP 496,628,646 after agreeing on selling AWB to achieve illicit profits for them and their partners by acquiring a controlling stake in the Bank through a company in Cyprus which is contributing in a direct investment company in British Virgin Islands that manages an offshore fund.
The defendants acquired a controlling stake in AWB, controlled its board and sold the Bank, violating the regulatory procedures and regulations that obligate disclosing information to the stock market that may affect the price of the shares.
Alaa Mubarak was also accused of cooperating with civil servants to have illicit profits of EGP 12,235,442 through purchasing shares in AWB after being informed with the crucial information from the other defendants.
The general prosecutor decided to detain Gamal Mubarak, Alaa Mubarak pending further case investigation, freeze their money inside and outside Egypt and tell foreign authorities to investigate about the money of the defendants.
