Arab man gets 6 months' jail for rape bid, despite appeal

Abu Dhabi - The Arab man will be deported after serving the sentence

An Arab man convicted of trying to rape a woman will spend six months in jail, despite appeal.
The Federal Supreme Court in Abu Dhabi upheld earlier rulings by lower courts that found the man guilty of trying to force the woman into having sex with him.
The judge, however, cancelled the three months' jail sentence that had been handed down to the defendant by the appeal court and instead increased the term to six months.
Official court documents stated that the man had tried to rape the woman after he found her walking alone in a quiet place in a northern emirate.
The woman, however, resisted his advance and shouted for help. The man ran away after people came to her rescue. She later lodged a complaint with the police.
Police had arrested the Arab man after investigations.
Prosecutors charged the man with attempted rape, but he denied the accusation.
The Criminal Court of First Instance had sentenced the Arab man to six months in jail. The court also ordered for the man's deportation after serving the term.
The man challenged the verdict in the Appeal Court which reduced the jail sentence to three months.
Prosecutors appealed the ruling in UAE's top court arguing that the penalty for attempted rape, according to the law, is imprisonment not less than six months.
The Supreme Court judge decided to cancel the Appeal Court's ruling and maintained the sentence pronounced by the first court.
The man will be deported after serving his jail term.

ismail@khaleejtimes.com

• Abu Dhabi