DUBAI // A man was attacked in front of the Egyptian consulate by his wife, her brother and her mother over a divorce that involved accusations of child abuse, a court heard yesterday.
Prosecutors charged the Egyptian woman AT, 28; her mother, ZM, 53; and her brother MT, 33, with assaulting and robbing SM, a 32-year-old driving instructor.
Prosecutors said the three family members beat, kicked and bit SM, then stole Dh20,000 and a folder containing his daughters' passports, birth certificates and other documents in front of the consulate in Dubai.
SM said he was separated from AT, his wife of 11 years.
"I have two girls, 10 and 9 years old, from her," he told prosecutors. "I separated from her in Egypt after I learnt that she has a very bad reputation after she published compromising images of herself and my daughters online.
"After I filed a custody case against her in Egypt, she fled to the UAE and we agreed on a divorce after I pay her Dh20,000 in exchange for the girls."
Prosecution records show that last October 12, SM met his wife, her mother and her brother at the consulate to confirm the divorce settlement in the presence of a consular official.
"She changed her terms and we did not agree," SM told prosecutors.
After SM left the consulate, prosecutors said, MT pushed him to the ground while ZM sat on him and bit him. AT kicked him, took the documents and fled, SM said.
A Dubai Police corporal who was called to the scene told prosecutors that witnesses had confirmed the incident.
"The wife left by the time we got there, but the brother and mother were there and had no injuries. The brother asked me to collect an item and disappeared for a while before returning and claiming that he was hurt," the officer said.
All three denied the charges at the Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance before Judge Hamad Abdel Latif.
"We defended ourselves, your honour. He pushed my mother first," M T told the court. A verdict was scheduled for June 13.
amusatafa@thenational.ae
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