Cairo -
Egyptian police arrested on Tuesday Ahmed Qaddaf al-Dam, a cousin of Muammar Gaddafi, who is wanted in Libya for his role in the regime of the slain Libyan strongman, Egyptian state media reported.
Qaddaf al-Dam, reached on his cellphone, however sought to play down the arrest and said he would file a complaint with the Egyptian public prosecutor and Libyan authorities.
“I am on my way now, in the company of lawyers,” he said.
A security official and state television said Qaddaf al-Dam surrendered to police after they besieged his home. The official MENA news agency reported he will be handed over to Libyan authorities, who want to put him on trial.
Police outside his apartment in the upscale Cairo neighbourhood of Zamalek said Qaddaf al-Dam surrendered without a struggle after police sent up the Libyan consul to persuade him.
An official at the Libyan embassy told AFP that authorities had also arrested two other figures, former Libyan ambassador Ali Maria and Mohammed Ibrahim, the brother of senior Gaddafi-era Libyan official Ahmed Ibrahim.
“This is part of a plan by the Libyan authorities in coordination with Egyptian authorities to arrest wanted Libyans living in Egypt,” Abdel Hamid al-Safi said.
Shortly after the start of the uprising that toppled Gaddafi, Qaddaf al-Dam had announced he had resigned from all official functions.
Until then, Qaddaf al-Dam, who had permanent residence in Cairo, oversaw Libya's relations with Egypt. - Sapa-AFP