The Justice Ministry has begun investigating several complaints filed against ousted President Hosni Mubarak and former Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation Youssef Wali, who are accused of seizing large areas of land owned by the General Authority for Fish Resources Development (GAFRD) and allocating it to the Cooperative Housing Association for Military Pilots (CHAMP), said a judicial source.

Judge Osama al-Saidi has requested evidence regarding this case as well as regarding related allegations against former presidential candidate Ahmed Shafiq, who is accused of selling Mubarak’s sons, Alaa and Gamal Mubarak, land belonging to the Pilots Association at well below market value.

Lawyer Saad Mohamed Saleh filed a complaint to the public prosecutor, who referred it to Judge Osama al-Saidi to begin investigations.

A number of officials at the Agriculture Ministry and the CHAMP were also accused of involvement in the acquisition of 119 acres of lands belonging to the GAFRD in the Bitter Lake region and of illegally distributing these land plots to military pilots.

A judicial source said that Saidi had begun the investigations and that the necessary legal action will be taken within hours, includingsummoning the lawyer who filed the complaint in order to examine the documents he presented, and finding out whether or not there are any witnesses.

In related news, a judicial source said that a committee of Justice Ministry experts is currently finalizing its report regarding land sold to the Mubarak sons by the CHAMP in light of the complaint submitted by former MP Essam Sultan against Shafiq.

Sources said that members of the investigative committee have examined the land in question and determined its boundaries as they made the reports.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm