Egyptian tycoon wins bid to throw out UK lawsuit over singer's murder

Egyptian real estate magnate Hisham Talaat Moustafa has successfully had a London lawsuit against him dismissed. The case had been brought by former world kickboxing champion Riyadh Al-Azzawi, who accused Moustafa of orchestrating the 2008 murder of Lebanese singer Suzanne Tamim.

Moustafa, the CEO of the Talaat Moustafa Group, was convicted in Egypt of paying a former police officer to kill Tamim, 30, in her luxury Dubai apartment. Initially sentenced to death in 2009, his conviction was later overturned. However, after two retrials, he was again found guilty and sentenced to 15 years in prison. He was granted a presidential pardon by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in 2017.

Tamim had been romantically involved with Al-Azzawi, an Iraqi-British athlete, at the time of her death. In 2022, Al-Azzawi filed a claim at London’s High Court, seeking damages for emotional and psychological distress resulting from the murder.

Moustafa challenged the jurisdiction of the case, arguing that Al-Azzawi’s legal team failed to disclose key evidence when granted permission to proceed, and that the matter should be heard in Dubai, not London.

On Friday, Judge Christopher Butcher sided with Moustafa and dismissed the claim. He ruled that Al-Azzawi had not adequately disclosed whether the case had been filed within the legal time limit when applying to serve Moustafa in Egypt. The judge further concluded that Dubai’s courts were the more appropriate venue should the case move forward.

Neither Moustafa’s UK legal representatives nor Al-Azzawi’s lawyers offered immediate comment following the ruling.

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