Mubarak-era premier gets 5 years in Egypt corruption case

CAIRO - Egypt's official news agency is reporting that a Cairo court has convicted a former prime minister who served under deposed autocrat Hosni Mubarak of illegally amassing wealth while in office, sentencing him to five years in prison in a retrial.

yesterday's verdict follows an appeal from Ahmed Nazif of an earlier three-year sentence. He was accused of illegally amassing $8.2 million while in office.

Nazif was not in court. He still can appeal the verdict.

Nazif had been acquitted in a separate retrial of charges of wrongfully awarding contracts for supplying new car license plates.

Many Mubarak-era officials have won a series of acquittals, mostly in corruption-related cases. Meanwhile, courts are packed with cases involving ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi, members of his outlawed Muslim Brotherhood and secular activists.