Egyptian television presenter and media personality Sarah Khalifa has been sentenced to death by hanging alongside 11 other defendants following a dramatic court case involving an alleged organised network for manufacturing and trafficking synthetic drugs.
The Cairo Criminal Court handed down the verdict after finding presenter Khalifa and the other defendants guilty of forming a criminal organisation involved in procuring materials used to manufacture synthetic narcotics for distribution, as well as possessing firearms and ammunition without licences.
Khalifa, 39, became widely known in Egypt for presenting “Mission Impossible,” a programme focusing on security and crime-related issues.
Beyond television, she has also been associated with business ventures, including a cosmetic surgery clinic and an events-production company, and has built a substantial social-media following.
750kg of drugs and secret laboratories
The case, dubbed by Egyptian media as the “Major Drug Case,” centres on allegations that the accused operated a sophisticated network whose members had different responsibilities, including importing raw materials, manufacturing synthetic drugs, storing the substances and preparing them for distribution.
Investigators reportedly seized more than 750 kilograms of narcotics and raw materials allegedly intended for the production of synthetic drugs.
Authorities also discovered two residential apartments that were allegedly being used as clandestine laboratories.
Unlicensed firearms and ammunition were also seized during the investigation.
Egyptian prosecutors reportedly relied on witness testimony as well as digital and technical evidence, including conversations, photographs and videos, in building the case against the defendants.
Khalifa was arrested in Cairo in April 2025 as investigations into the alleged network intensified.
She has consistently denied involvement in the drug operation.
Tearful plea in court
During the proceedings, Khalifa reportedly broke down while maintaining that she was innocent.
According to reports, she told the court that she had been brought up by respectable parents and had no reason to become involved in the drug trade.
She also insisted that she had never used drugs and pleaded with the court to listen to her defence.
Her reported plea included the words:
“My parents raised me well; they are people who pray, and I don’t need drug money.”
ABC News also reported that Khalifa shouted that she had never smoked a cigarette and insisted:
“I’m innocent.”
Despite her denials, the court convicted her and the other defendants on the charges.
12 sentenced to death as seven are acquitted
The case involved 28 defendants in total.
Twelve, including Khalifa, were sentenced to death, while nine received life imprisonment and seven were acquitted, according to reports from Egyptian media.
The death sentences were issued after the court referred the case to Egypt’s Grand Mufti, whose opinion is required in capital cases.
However, the Mufti’s opinion is advisory rather than binding on the court.
Importantly, Khalifa’s death sentence is not yet final. She and the other convicted defendants have the right to challenge the ruling through Egypt’s appeals system, including before the Court of Cassation.
Separate prison sentence
The drug case was not the only legal trouble facing Khalifa.
Reports from Egyptian media indicate that she was also convicted in a separate case connected to the assault and filming of a young man.
Different reports have described the separate sentence differently, with Egyptian and international outlets reporting prison terms connected to that case.
The developments have transformed the public image of a television personality once associated with a programme examining crime and security issues into one of the most prominent defendants in Egypt’s latest high-profile narcotics prosecution.
Egypt continues to impose the death penalty for several serious offences, including drug trafficking, terrorism and premeditated murder.
According to figures cited by international media, hundreds of death sentences were issued in Egypt in 2025, although not all necessarily result in executions.
For now, Khalifa’s fate remains subject to the appeals process, meaning the September 2026 ruling does not mean that her execution is imminent or that the sentence is legally final.
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