Egyptian property tycoon granted retrial over Tamim murder

Two men found guilty over the murder of the Lebanese singer Suzanne Tamim will face a retrial after a Cairo court accepted their grounds for appeal today. Hesham Talaat Moustafa, 50, an Egyptian property tycoon and senior member of the ruling National Democratic Party, and Mohsen el Sokari, 40, a former state security officer, stood accused over the murder of Tamim in Dubai July 2008. They were sentenced to death by the Cairo Criminal Court on May 21 after Moustafa was charged with hiring, inciting and assisting el Sokari to kill Tamim. Moustafa was said to have paid el Sokari US$2 million (Dh7.3m) to murder the 30-year-old singer, with whom he was romantically linked. Tamim was found dead on July 28, 2008. Her throat had been slit and she was lying in a pool of blood at the entrance to her flat at the Jumeirah Beach Residence. The defendants' lawyers lodged the appeals in August of last year. newsdesk@thenational.ae