Private tutor charged with sexually assaulting four girls

A private tutor sexually assaulted four girls aged between 7 and 11 that he was teaching, it is alleged in court.

DUBAI // A private tutor sexually assaulted four girls aged between 7 and 11 that he was teaching, it was alleged in court yesterday.

AA, 43, an unregistered teacher who works as a clerk, is also accused of threatening to kill the girls, cut them into pieces and throw them in the desert for dogs if they told their parents, court records show.

He denied the charges in the Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance yesterday, appearing before Judge Fahmy Mounri Fahmy.

AA's lawyer, Badr Abdullah Khamis, said yesterday the prosecution's case was filed maliciously against his client.

"Prosecution records show that [AA] was owed Dh3,000 from the family and he was continuously told that he would be paid later," Mr Khamis said.

"According to a forensic examiner's testimony to prosecutors, no signs of forced intercourse or assault were found," he told the court.

The report was not presented to court, but the testimony of the forensic examiner was included.

Mr Khamis argued the children's testimony was not admissible under the law, which states that a conviction cannot be made based on a child's testimony, made without an oath, or without tangible evidence presented proving their claims.

According to prosecution records, AA had been teaching the girls for three years. The abuse is alleged to have come to light in June last year, after one of the girls told her father.

The Palestinian father reported the alleged assaults to the Bur Dubai police station, after which the girls were referred to forensic experts for medical examination.

The court will issue a verdict on January 19.