CAIRO — An Egyptian real estate tycoon falls in love with a Lebanese pop star. After three to four years, she decides to leave him. He pays another man $2 million to kill her. She is found dead, with her throat slit. He is found guilty of inciting and ordering the murder.

And what do women here have to say about the homicide victim? Mostly, that she deserved it.

The story of Hisham Talaat Moustafa and Suzanne Tamim has engrossed men and women of all ages in the Arab world for more than two years now. In the latest episode last month, Mr. Moustafa, who was also a prominent politician and leading member of Egypt’s ruling party, was saved when an Egyptian appeals court reduced his sentence from death to 15 years in jail.

The fact that Mr. Moustafa, who has wealth and influence, has whittled down his spell in prison to the point where he now looks like he might walk away from his crime has enraged public opinion on several levels.

Political analysts have characterized Mr. Moustafa as the ultimate symbol of corruption in a country where the rich and ruling elite can afford to act with disregard for legal accountability and social justice. Human rights activists have lamented what they see as political meddling in the rule of law. The general public in Egypt, 40 percent of whom live on less than $2 a day, are simply bewildered by the millions Mr. Moustafa spent, first to win his lover’s heart, then to kill her and now to save his life and eventually get out of jail.