(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) A man, who had been convicted of human trafficking in a case in which one woman was sold and forced to work as a prostitute, has had his verdict quashed by the Court of Appeal.
However, the appellate court upheld the five-year prison term handed down to the four other co-accused, along with their deportation orders. The acquitted accused had been charged with criminal complicity in human trafficking but the Court of Appeal cleared the man due to a lack of evidence.
The five were sentenced by the Court of First Instance in April to five years in prison each for forcing a runaway maid into prostitution. Defendants A.A. and S.R., 29 and 24, both jobless Bangladeshis, were convicted of human trafficking by deceiving the victim with a job offer and forcing her into prostitution under coercion and intimidation. They were also found guilty of locking her up. Three other men, all jobless Bangladeshis - including the one who has now been cleared - aged between 26 and 32 years, were convicted of aiding and abetting A.A. and S.R. in human trafficking.
The maid's fall from a flat in Naif on October 6 last year prompted the police to bust the gang.
The 30-year-old Bangladeshi maid had told the police as she lay in Rashid Hospital for treatment that she tried to dangle down through the building pipes but fell down. She claimed that she was locked in the flat and forced to work in prostitution.
The main accused admitted he had brought the maid from Sharjah to a flat in Naif where he had sex with her twice against her will. He then sold her to an accomplice, S.R., for Dh1,000.
S.R. then gave her to a third man to work as a prostitute for him. The maid claimed that she ran away from her sponsor due to alleged bad treatment, but the man who was meant to help her find a job at a supermarket tricked her.
The verdict is subject to appeal within 30 days.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.