There was drama in a Cairo courtroom as former television presenter Sarah Khalifa broke down in tears after hearing her fate.
The judge had just sentenced her to death by hanging.
Khalifa, 39, is well known in Egypt as the former host of the crime show "Mission Impossible." But she was in court not as a presenter, but as a convict in a major drug case.
According to proceedings from the Cairo Criminal Court, she was found guilty of helping to run an organized drug trafficking network. The court said the group imported raw materials for making synthetic drugs and stored the finished products inside residential apartments.
Prosecutors told the court that the operation was massive. The investigation covered 28 defendants in total. During raids, security operatives seized over 1,600 pounds of narcotics, plus illegal firearms and ammunition.
Khalifa could not hold back her emotions when the judgment was read. She wept openly and pleaded with the court. She maintained that she had no need for drug money and denied all allegations against her.
During interrogation, she reportedly told investigators she had never smoked a cigarette in her life.
The court did not sentence her alone. Eleven other defendants were also handed the death penalty in the same case.
Nine others received life imprisonment, while seven people standing trial in the same case were discharged and acquitted.
Before her arrest in 2025, Khalifa lived a high-profile life. Apart from television, she also operated a cosmetic surgery clinic and an event-planning business in Cairo.
Under Egyptian law, every death sentence must be reviewed by the country's Grand Mufti before it becomes final. That step has already been taken in this case.
The ruling is not yet final. The defendants still have the right to appeal the death sentence at a higher court.
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