Security services in Giza arrested researcher and TV presenter Islam Behery early on Sunday morning to enforce court rulings in six bounced check cases.
Security sources told Al-Masry Al-Youm that a businesswoman with multiple investments in an Arab country filed a complaint against Behery last week, accusing him of fraud.
Investigations revealed that Behery convinced the complainant of his ability to invest money for her, so she transferred a sum of money to him two years ago, and he has not returned it to her.
The complainant explained that she transferred the money from her account in a bank to the defendant’s account, so that he could invest it for her in the Egyptian Stock Exchange.
The head of the Giza Security Directorate, Major General Sameh al-Hemily, directed the intensification of investigations into the incident to determine its circumstances, and to notify the Public Prosecution to conduct investigations.
Who is Islam Behery?
Born on April 5, 1974, Behery holds a master’s degree in “Methods of Dealing with Heritage” from the University of Wales in the United Kingdom, and worked for the Youm7 Foundation.
He presented a program bearing his name on the “al-Qahira wal Nas” (Cairo and the People) satellite channel, which has sparked controversy within religious and cultural circles.
Al-Azhar criticized him, and his program “With Islam Behery” was later canceled after he was accused of holding contempt for Islam.
At the end of May 2015, an Egyptian court convicted him of contempt of religion and sentenced him to five years in prison. In December of the same year, the court decided to reduce his sentence to one year in prison.
In November 2016, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi issued a presidential pardon that included Behery.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
