Trial Date Set for Menna Shalaby in Drug Case

Egyptian actress Menna Shalaby is set to face trial at the North Cairo Criminal Court on January 5, 2023.

Shalaby has been referred to the criminal court on charges of possessing controlled narcotics with the intent of using them. The drugs had been found in her luggage at Cairo International Airport last month.

The case was based on five testimonies of the airport workers who inspected the actress's luggage. They revealed that 12 bags of marijuana that were seized at the airport belonged to Shalaby.

The decision was determined based on the police investigations and the recordings of the monitoring machines at the airport, in addition to the results of the chemical laboratory’s examination of the seizures.

On November 25, Egyptian authorities arrested Shalaby at the airport after security services seized the marijuana in her possessions.

She was returning from New York on Friday around 12:00 PM. She was being searched at the airport customs when they found the stuffed marijuana.

During investigations, Shalaby said that she was arrested at Cairo airport after she returned from New York after attending a festival.

She denied the accusations and noted that after she arrived at the airport she entered customs and placed her bags on the security device for inspection.

"I had 3 bags with me, I placed them for the scan of the items inside it, and I found one of those standing at the customs telling me that I have an electronic cigarette, and I told him that I smoke a vape," Shalaby added.

She continued: "I was opening the bag to show him the vape and found another telling me that they will open the rest of the bags and examine them. I agreed,".

Shalaby pointed out that she was asked to go to one of the rooms in the customs where she waited for some time.

"After a while, I found many people and officers looking at a green box and telling me that it contained marijuana. I told them that this is not true and it was normal makeup," she said.

She added that another individual told her she had cocaine, noting: "I told him that I do not consume them in the first place but then they told me to wait a while,".

Shalaby stated that after two hours they told her to call her lawyer.

"They told me that I have marijuana and will be referred to the prosecution, then, I found news circulating on the websites stating that I had been arrested with drugs".