10-year jail for drunk driver who raped jobseeker in Dubai

Dubai - The 21-year-old had arrived on a visit visa to look for a job.

A man, who lured a jobseeker to an 'interview' at his flat where he raped her, has been sentenced to 10 years in jail by a Dubai court.

According to public prosecution records, the 25-year-old Pakistani man, working as a driver, lured the Indian victim to his flat after promising her a job. He was heavily drunk at the time of the incident.

The Court of First Instance ordered his deportation after he served two additional months in incarceration for consuming liquor without a permit.

He had earlier denied the rape charge in court.

The incident took place on March 14 in Naif.

The victim, a 21-year-old on a visit visa, recounted how she arrived to the UAE on March 5 to look for a job. She stayed in Abu Dhabi with her aunt. "One of my flatmates, a Pakistani, told me that her brother -- the defendant -- could get me a job."

She talked to him on WhatsApp and he told her to go to Dubai after sending her resume. He led her to a flat in Freej Al Murar, Naif. "A Pakistani man interviewed me and offered me a job and a salary. He then dropped me at a nearby building where the defendant stayed. It was around 8pm. The accused claimed he was busy at work. I waited for him till midnight. When he arrived, he insisted I went to his flat to talk about my hiring and the work. He said he would take me back to Abu Dhabi after we had dinner. He claimed he had already spoken to my aunt. Upon his insistence, I went with him," the victim told the prosecutor.

She found it to be a studio flat where four Pakistani men were having alcoholic drinks.

He locked the door and took her mobile phone. He took her to the balcony and placed a mattress as a curtain. He then raped her under duress after threatening he would bring his friends to sexually assault her if she screamed.

A Pakistani driver, 41, recalled that the complainant had stopped him at 4.30 am telling him to take her to Abu Dhabi. "I told her it is an expensive trip. She told me crying what she had just been through. I took her to the police station. Someone called me later and offered me money for not giving a testimony at the public prosecution."

The defendant's DNA traces were found on the victim's body, according to the forensic report.

A call the defendant made from his detention to the victim, in which he admitted guilt, was recorded by her.

The verdict has been appealed.

mary@khaleejtimes.com