ABU DHABI // Two men who kidnapped a woman and raped her in the desert for three hours were ordered to pay her Dh800,000 in compensation, the Civil Court ruled.
An Emirati, 23, and an Arab juvenile, 17, were convicted of kidnapping, raping and endangering the life of the woman by the Criminal Court after they abducted her from outside her office in Dubai.
They had asked her to give them road directions and then sprayed her face with a drugging substance until she lost consciousness. They then put her in a car. When she woke up, she was in the back seat of the car in the middle of the desert, with the second defendant sleeping next to her.
The older defendant told her that his younger brother was in a coma and asked her to read the Quran to him to cure him of the black magic curse he was under.
When they reached the desert, they demanded she get out the car before severely beating her, at times using an agal – the black rope that holds the headdress in place – and took turns raping her.
They also stole the contents of her purse, before burning it, after which they drove off, leaving her alone in the desert.
She said she saw headlights from another car and kept walking towards them until she was rescued. The forensic doctor found several bruises on her body, and skin and hair residue under her nails, which proved she had tried to resist them.
Police managed to get the defendants’ car details by checking surveillance cameras around her workplace where they picked her up and the pair were arrested.
The first defendant was handed a life sentence for the rape and kidnap, and a three-year jail sentence for stealing the woman’s purse and damaging her belongings.
The 17-year-old was sentenced to 10 years in prison, followed by deportation.
The Appeals Court then reduced the Emirati’s sentence to six years in prison, and the Arab’s to one year in jail, followed by deportation.
The victim then sued the pair for Dh1 million in the Civil Court for damages that included losing her virginity, cancelling her marriage – which she had planned before the rape occurred – and breaching her reputation and honour.
She also filed for financial damages after they stole her purse, phone and burnt her belongings. She also missed days off work to receive treatment after the attack.
The first instance Civil Court granted her Dh800,000 for damages.
The pair appealed against the verdict, arguing that they were financially incapable of paying such an amount.
The Civil Appeals Court upheld the Dh800,000 compensation, saying that compensation was calculated based on the severity of the act and circumstances of the incident and its drastic effect on the victim, before considering the status of the convicted persons.
hdajani@thenational.ae
