In April, a Cairo criminal court sentenced the defendant to 15 years in prison and fined him EGP 50,000 in the 21 February 2024 case that rattled the public.

In late February, Habiba, 24, went into a coma after she sustained a brain haemorrhage from jumping out of a speeding ride-sharing vehicle to escape after she feared for her safety due to the driver's suspicious behaviour. She died in the hospital 21 days later.

In March, the Public Prosecution referred the driver to a criminal court on charges of attempted kidnapping, possession of narcotics and driving under the influence.

Uber's legal representatives revealed during the investigations that the company had previously closed the driver's app account due to sexual harassment complaints against him, but he resumed using the app to pick up customers through a fake national ID number.

On Thursday, in detailing the reasoning behind its decision to discard the kidnapping conviction, the court said the driver only picked up the victim after she requested a ride on the ride-sharing app.

The court said the driver was under the influence of hashish and was not responsive to Habiba's requests to lower the volume of the music on the car's radio.

It noted that this disregard caused her significant distress and increased her suspicion about his behaviour during the ride.