A Cairo criminal court has handed down death sentences to prominent Egyptian television presenter Sarah Khalifa and 11 co-defendants for their involvement in a large-scale drug manufacturing and trafficking operation. The verdict, confirmed on Saturday, followed a trial that exposed an organized criminal gang specializing in the procurement of materials for synthetic drug production, their manufacture, and subsequent trafficking.

Khalifa, 39, best known for her crime and security-focused program "Mission Impossible," was found guilty of forming an organized criminal gang involved in these illicit activities. The court also convicted the defendants of possessing unlicensed firearms and ammunition.

During the investigation, authorities seized over 750 kilograms of narcotics and raw materials used in their production. Two apartments were discovered to have been used as laboratories for drug manufacturing. The prosecution's case was built on the testimonies of 20 witnesses and substantial digital evidence, including messages, photographs, and video clips documenting the group's operations.

The death sentences were issued after the court consulted Egypt's Grand Mufti for his religious opinion, a mandatory procedural step in capital cases in Egypt, though the opinion is advisory. The verdict is subject to appeal.

In a separate case, Khalifa and some of the other defendants received five-year prison sentences for their involvement in the kidnapping and assault of a young man.

Egypt's legal code permits the death penalty for serious offenses, including premeditated murder, terrorism, certain rape offenses, and drug trafficking. According to reports, the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms documented 541 death sentences issued in Egypt in 2025.