The North Cairo Criminal Court acquitted and ordered the release of former Housing Minister Ibrahim Soliman from illicit gains charges on Sunday.

Soliman was facing charges of squandering public funds and illegal seizure of state lands as well.

He was sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to return EGP 970m to the state treasury alongside the other defendant, Magdy Rasekh, in another case back in December but successfully appealed. The Court of Cassation ordered a retrial that is set to resume on 19 May.

Soliman is wanted for questioning by the public funds prosecution for a number of other corruption charges as well and as such will remain in Tora Prison until he faces questioning.

Meanwhile the Cairo Criminal Court on Sunday accepted an appeal by former minister of industry and trade Rashid Mohamed Rashid and his family against an earlier order by the Illicit Gains Authority freezing their funds and assets.

Rashid, currently living in United Arab Emirates, was placed on an arrest blacklist in Egyptian airports for several corruption charges being brought against him. However he recently paid back EGP 15m and his name was lifted from the blacklist. He also paid back EGP 204,000 to get out of charges of accepting bribes in the form of gifts from the Akhbar Al-Youm institution.