Three former ministers have been referred to an Egyptian criminal court on charges of squandering public funds.

The action by Prosecutor General Abdel-Megin Mahoud was taken against former prime minister Ahmed Nazif, former interior minister Habib El-Adly and Youssef Boutros-Ghali, ex-minister of finance.

Nazif is accused of granting a German company a contract worth LE92 million to manufacture car licence plates for the Ministry of Interior through a direct order rather than the public auction stipulated by law.

El-Adly and Ghali are accused of complicity in the deal.

El-Adly is also being tried for money laundering and is implicated in the killing of peaceful protesters during the January 25 Revolution.

Nazif was recently remanded in police custody pending investigations. He was incarcerated in Tora Prison where other top Mubarak regime officials, including El-Adly, are currently being held.

Ghali is still at large but is widely believed to have fled the country weeks ago.