Egyptian gets 3 years for sexually assaulting minor girls

CAIRO (AP) — An Egyptian court Monday sentenced a prominent businessman to three years in prison for sexually assaulting seven minor girls in an orphanage he founded, the state-run news agency reported.

The Cairo Criminal Court also ordered Mohamed el-Amin, a pro-government tycoon who founded several Egyptian media outlets, to pay a fine of 200,000 Egyptian pounds (around $11,000).

Prosecutors also found el-Amin guilty of human trafficking by exploiting the children’s vulnerability in the girls’ orphanage in southern Beni Suef province.

Monday’s court ruling is subject to appeal before a higher court. El-Amin’s defense lawyer has repeatedly described the accusations as baseless.

The court did not specify the nature of the assaults but said they were not rape. A previous statement by prosecutors said the girls were minors when the crimes took place.

Authorities closed the orphanage late last year after the allegations against el-Amin surfaced. He was arrested in January and has since been in jail.