Man appeals jail term for sending ‘love messages’

abu dhabi — A young Emirati man, who was convicted of sending ‘offensive love messages’ to a woman via WhatsApp, has challenged his three-month-jail sentence. He has asked the Abu Dhabi Appeal court judge to spare him from the prison sentence, claiming he didn’t mean to offend the Arab woman.

The Criminal Court of First Instance had also fined him Dh20,000. During the hearing on Monday, he told the judge that he was ready to pay the fine and that he would never commit such a crime again.

Court documents stated that the Emirati, who is in his 20s, had sent text messages to the young woman, also in her early 20s, in which he asked her to become his lover. He said to her that he was the “only right man” for her.

The woman said she asked him to stop sending such messages to her, stressing that it was an insult, but he allegedly continued doing so.

The woman later filed a complaint against him to the authorities and prosecutors charged him with sending offensive messages and violating cyber laws.

The man had admitted to sending the WhatsApp messages to the woman, but claimed that he did it “jokingly” in order to create a “friendly relationship” that might later result in marriage.

The Emirati said he didn’t mean to offend or insult the woman.

The woman’s lawyer had demanded that the Emirati compensate his client for the moral damages he caused her. The trial was adjourned until October 15.