Former Egypt international footballer Aly Ghazal has been jailed after being convicted multiple times of fraud in relation to a failed import-export investment scheme.
The 33-year-old former defensive midfielder, renowned for his versatility and stints playing for Portuguese, Chinese clubs, and Major League Soccer outfit Vancouver Whitecaps FC, began his sentence at Cairo’s general prison.
Ghazal’s legal woes began in July 2024 shortly after he confirmed plans to transition to coaching at third-division side Ra Sporting Club.
Several individuals alleged that he defrauded them of 7 million Egyptian Pounds (almost USD 140,000) on the basis of a lucrative import-export firm that promised high monthly rates of returns.
Prosecutions by the Egyptian National Police revealed that Ghazal wrote nine valueless cheques and was also charged with 26 judicial rulings ranging from fraud and embezzlement to breach of trust.
Although he had previously denied the accusations and claimed that he had severed his ties with the concerned company in 2022, Cairo’s First Settlement Misdemeanors Court confirmed the rulings and sentenced him for three years in prison against a bail of 10000 Egyptian Pounds.
His lawyers plan to appeal the convictions, but mounting lawsuits and public outcry led to his re-arrest and re-transference to the New Cairo Court immediately.
As the judicial drama unfolds, Ghazal’s soap-opera fall from football hero still astounds Egyptian football fans and shows the necessity for transparency and accountability – on and off the pitch.
