Egyptian parliament member arrested in Lebanese diva’s slaying

A real estate billionaire and member of the Egyptian parliament was arrested Tuesday in the slaying of a troubled Lebanese diva in a tale that has fascinated the Arab media with its plot twists, whiffs of revenge and lurid glimpses into the echelons of celebrity and power.

Hisham Talaat Mustafa, a member of President Hosni Mubarak’s ruling National Democratic Party, was charged with ordering the murder of his former lover, Suzanne Tamim, according to the Egyptian prosecutor’s office. The singer was found in her Dubai apartment in July with her throat slit and multiple stab wounds.

The investigation led to former Egyptian police officer Muhsen Sukkari, who worked as a security guard at the Four Season’s Hotel in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh. Mustafa’s real estate group built the hotel and Sukkari confessed to police that the billionaire paid him $2 million to kill Tamim, according to Egyptian prosecutor Abdel Meguid Mahmoud.

Indications that Mustafa was allegedly involved in the case intensified two weeks ago when the Egyptian government forbade the nation’s media from reporting on the story. Mustafa runs one of country’s largest development companies, Talaat Mustafa Group, and is a member of the upper house of Parliament with close ties to the Mubarak family.

Tamim was discovered on a TV talent show in Lebanon in 1996. Her career was reportedly plagued by personal problems, including legal battles with her estranged husband and music producer, Adel Maatouk. She and Mustafa allegedly became involved in a relationship, meeting in Cairo and Dubai.

Dubai authorities quickly hinted that the slaying had more to do with passion than money. Dubai police Maj. Gen. Khamis Mattar Mazeina told the Arab media: “It was a semiprofessional killing, but unfortunately for him, he left a vital clue behind… . The way in which the killing took place suggests a revenge motive, as nothing was taken from the apartment and nothing was disturbed.”

 jeffrey.fleishman@latimes.com