Zambia’s T7WSS private jet mystery: What we know so far including "Julian Assange's French lawyer joins East Africa's gold controversy"

First of all, Egyptian journalist Karim Asaad who was arrested on Saturday was freed on Sunday. 

Asaad, a member of the editorial team of the fact-finding platform Matsada2sh in Cairo was detained on Saturday following the impressive and revealing coverage of the platform to the T7WSS private jet incident.

Following the release of Asaad, Matsada2sh announced on Tuesday that it would take some time off till next week. Asaad’s detention and release were like the first implication back in Cairo involving the controversial T7WSS private jet mystery.

Many people are wondering if Matsada2sh, which has become one of the few independent free fact-finding and news sources will continue the same path after what happened.

In those three days, I believe the absence of Matsada2sh and its unbiased news coverage for real resulted in the spread of rumors in Cairo that travelled to Lusaka. It is better to give freedom to Matsada2sh and similar independent news websites instead of letting rumors and fake news for real to spread.

The rumors are currently about one thing: The identity of the sixth Egyptian detained in Lusaka but we will deal with that later.

The Mystery of the Sixth Egyptian

Egyptian journalist Omar El-Fatairy published earlier this week the names of the defendants in the T7WSS private jet incident, according to an alleged document from the court. The document includes the names, the occupations and the nationalities.

انفراد // وصلني قبل قليل صورة لاسماء المتهمين جميعا من محضر المحكمة المتهمين في قضية #طيارة_زامبيا عدد هم جميعا 13
المصريين المتهمين المحتجزين:
1- مايكل عادل ميشيل بطرس.
2- وليد رفعت فهمي بطرس.
3- ياسر مختار عبد الغفور الششتاوي.
4- منير شاكر جرجس عوض.
5- محمد عبد الخالق… pic.twitter.com/ac29yXesZy

— omar elfatairy (@OElfatairy) August 20, 2023

While the document does not include the case number, most of the names are identical to the names that have been circulating on Egyptian social media and Zambian media.

The Egyptian defendants are:

• Walid Refaat Fahmi Botros, General Manager, Cairo
• Mounir Shaker Georges Awad, factory owner, Zagazig
• Mohamed Abdel-Hak Mohamed Gouda, pensioner colonel, Cairo (actually Giza because his address is in October City)
• Yasser Mokhtar Abdel-Ghafor, health and safety officer, Cairo
• Michael Adel Michel Boutros, businessman, Cairo
• Noha Salah El-Din Aly Nadim, flight attendant, Cairo

The other foreigners in the case are:

• Teunis De Mooij (actually Mooij), pilot, Netherlands (Schimmert)
• De La Cruz Castilla, pilot, Spain (Valencia)
• Ali Safi Ali Abdull Ali, pilot, Saint Kitts and Nevis (Cairo)

The other Zambian defendants are:

• Shadreck Kapasa Kasanda, businessman
• Patrick Kwangu, accountable executive
• Mulungu Osward Diangame, accountant
• Jim Belemu, businessman

This document may have revealed, the identity of the sixth Egyptian. The sixth Egyptian may not be a VIP with connections to the regime. It could be Noha Salah El-Din, the flight attendant.

She has been largely absent from the media coverage of the case in Cairo and Lusaka.

I had originally thought that the sixth Egyptian could be pilot Ali Safi Ali, but it turns out that he did not enter Lusaka on an Egyptian passport, but rather a Saint Kitts and Nevis passport. This is a surprising detail, as 99.9% of Egyptians have never even heard of St. Kitts.

Due to the fact that the mainstream media is uninterested in covering the case, rumors are still circulating that the sixth Egyptian is actually a VIP with connections to the regime.

Some people have wasted their time trying to prove that the sixth Egyptian is either business tycoon and North Sinai Militiaman Ibrahim Al Organi or his son Essam Al-Organi of Al Organi group.

This is because Ibrahim and his son Essam are among the most frequent users of T7WSS, according to their photos of the jet and its flight records. 

Essam, who is also a licensed pilot, left a very interesting trail of photos on his Instagram account in countries like Qatar, the United Kingdom, and Oman, which correspond to the flight records of the private jet.

However, Ibrahim Al-Organi appeared in a live event for Al-Ahly Club SC on Wednesday, and Essam El-Organi shared a video and photos from Kasr Al-Aini Bridge in Cairo to prove that he was in Egypt.

OSINT fans and internet sleuths proved they are getting better and better in Egypt.

Again, the lack of proper, unbiased, independent coverage in the mainstream media has led to the spread of those theories about the Sixth Egyptian.

The crew appears in court on Wednesday

The entire crew appeared in a Zambian court last Wednesday. They stated that they were hired as pilots and flight attendants by Flying Group Middle East "FZCO". Flying Group has hired lawyers for the crew, but they have been unable to secure their release.

The crew is accused of money laundering, and they have accused the Zambian authorities of ill-treatment and denying their basic rights as defendants. They were unable to secure bail on Wednesday, and their detention pending investigation continues till 1 September.

The mystery of the Sixth Egyptian may not be as mysterious as it seems. It is possible that the answer is right in front of us, but due to mistrust and ignoring what has happened in the mainstream media, people tend to think that there is something more to the story.

Julian Assange's Lawyer Joins the Mystery

Another development in the T7WSS private jet incident is that French law firm Antoine Vey & Associates is now representing one or more of the defendants. It is unclear which defendant they are representing or whether it is the law firm hired by Flying Group Middle East or not.

Antoine Vey is a prominent criminal lawyer in France. He has represented high-profile clients, including Julian Assange.

On Thursday, Vey issued a statement that provides a new twist to the mystery. His version of events contradicts the official version presented by the Zambian authorities.

The statement reads:

The aircraft was impounded at the Kenneth Kaunda International Airport in Lusaka on August 14 while awaiting a take-off permit. Zambian authorities detained its passengers and confiscated cash and sophisticated mineral testing equipment that was on board and destined to the business activities of the plane's lessee.

This occurred while passengers on board were issuing SOS messages to airport and police authorities while a group of armed robbers were attempting to board the plane and threaten their safety. No charges have been made against anyone since the detention.

The crew and passengers of the private San Remo-registered aircraft that flew from Cairo and landed for refueling and to pick up a prominent South African businessman on his way to Johannesburg. The businessman on board with his entourage and security detail, armed with fully licensed handguns, were forced physically to disembark, were deprived of their passports, and placed under custody first at the airport and, later, at a police station inside Lusaka.

This is completely different from the Zambian Drugs Enforcement Commission (DEC)'s statement, which said that the plane came from Cairo to Lusaka and that its passengers were lured by some Zambian gold scammers.

The Vey statement does not mention the prominent South African businessman by name, nor does it mention the amount of money or gold that was confiscated. It also says that the T7WSS is registered in Italy's San Remo, when in fact the T7 indicates that it is registered in San Marino.

Vey accuses the Zambian authorities of fabricating the whole case. He also accuses them of subjecting the detainees to inhuman treatment, denial of access to legal counsel, and depriving them of proper food, sleep, and basic conditions. He also says that repeated demands for medical help by the ailing were left "unheeded."

The prominent French lawyer demanded that the Zambian authorities "immediately release the detainees to proper living conditions in a hotel pending the completion of the so-called investigation within a maximum of 48 hours, to be followed by unconditional approval for the aircraft and its passengers, with all their confiscated belongings, to depart Kenneth Kaunda International Airport after receiving the adequate apologies for the gross mistreatment they have received for no fault of their own."

It is unclear how the Zambian authorities will respond to Vey's demands.

The Vey statement was distributed by the Pan African APO Group for PR to be distributed throughout Africa. However, it was not made public until August 22.

The mystery surrounding the T7WSS private jet incident continues to deepen.