26-year-old accused of groping elderly woman

dubai — A 26-year-old man faced a charge of sexually harassing an elderly woman just outside her flat in Dubai. The Court of First Instance heard the Pakistani worker took the 67-year-old woman, an Indian, by surprise when he grabbed her from behind. She was entering her flat when the incident took place.

The defendant denied the woman’s accusations in court, claiming he was at his workplace in Jebel Ali at the time of the alleged incident. She reported the molestation on May 8.

“I was in the corridor, walking to my flat. It was around 7.15pm. A man passed by towards the lift. However, as I was opening my flat’s door, I was surprised by the man touching me inappropriately,” said the Indian housewife.

When she screamed, and her dog barked, which scared the defendant and he fled by taking the stairs.

The woman said she was not sure whether the man’s plan was to rob or sexually harass her.

The building’s security guard identified the accused three times among other suspects at the Bur Dubai police station.

The Indian security guard told the prosecutor.“I got a call from the complainant, who told me that a stranger sexually harassed her. I checked the CCTV footage and saw it was the same man I spoke to earlier.”

The worker has been placed in detention. The trial was adjourned to November 29.