Man jailed for three months for molesting tourist at hotel

dubai — A worker, who molested a French woman at a hotel, was sentenced to three months in jail by a Dubai court on Monday.

The Court of First Instance earlier heard that the 25-yearold Pakistani man groped the woman and slapped her on her back as she was walking to a hotel with her friend.

He denied a molestation charge at the court. The man was found guilty and the court ordered his deportation upon completion of his jail term.

The incident, which took place on August 9, was reported to Bur Dubai police station.

The tourist, 22, said she was walking with her friend to a hotel, whose name she couldn’t recall. “It was around midnight when we parked the car. The accused came there and told my friend to hand him over the car keys but she did not as he was behaving awkwardly. He walked along as we went to ask someone about the hotel. We even thought he was a security guard because of his uniform.”

The woman recounted that she was walking ahead of the accused when the latter slapped her from behind. “He took me off guard with his sudden move. I yelled at him but could not do anything because I was holding my purse.”

She went down the stairs and was about to take the lift when the worker inappropriately touched her again. She, along with her friend, reported him to the police later. The complainant’s 22-year-old French companion corroborated her testimony in front of the investigating prosecutor.

“I never saw that worker prior to the incident. I witnessed him touching my friend in an indecent way. I noticed he was not behaving normally then.”

During investigation, the worker admitted he spotted the two women at 1.30 am and liked one of them. He confessed he touched her and then followed them. He was referred to the Court of Misdemeanors on a charge of committing an indecent act in public. The ruling remains subject to appeal.