Egypt sues soccer star Aboutrika for tax evasion

An Egyptian court resumed on Monday the trial of soccer star Mohamed Aboutrika over alleged tax evasion charges worth 710,000 Egyptian pounds ($39,637.13 ).

The Egyptian Attorney General, Nabil Ahmed Sadek, later approved a decision of the general prosecutor to refer Aboutrika to trial over “tax evasion during the period from 2008 to 2009.”

In recent years, Aboutrika had been regarded as one of the most prominent players of the Egyptian national football team. He has notably contributed to many international and local titles, granted to the Egyptian team and Al-Ahli club team, before he resigned in December 2013.

The current regime, led by incumbent president Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, accuses Abuoutrika of being loyal to the Muslim Brotherhood group but has not given any concrete evidence.

Since Sisi led a military coup against the democratically elected government of President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013, the Egyptian authorities have launched an unprecedented crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood group’s leaders and members, as well as those suspected of even sympathising with the group.

The Egyptian authorities hold the group responsible for a wave of militant attacks that have swept the Sinai Peninsula and occasionally crept into other provinces and the capital Cairo. The Brotherhood strongly denies the accusations.

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