DUBAI // A driver who was accused of chasing a woman to her villa late at night then banging on her door in an attempt to rape her was found not guilty by the Dubai Criminal Court.
Pakistani Y K, 26, was faced with a sexual assault charge which he denied in court last month.
Prosecutors said he chased 32-year-old D P, from the Philippines, at 2am on February 9 last year as she was walking home from work.
“I stepped out of a taxi and started walking home when I felt footsteps behind me, so I walked faster,” said the receptionist.
She added that the man allegedly tried to grab her by the leg but failed, after which she ran home to Al Satwa. She then tried to shut the door but, she claimed, the driver pushed it.
“But I managed to close the door and lock it with the key and started shouting at him, then I heard he walked away,” said D P, who called police.
When they arrived, officers found that the man had been apprehended by a number of Filipino men who responded to the victim’s screams.
“We found him sitting on the floor surrounded by men, who said that he tried to rape the victim after following her home but, when she screamed, they heard her and came then saw him at the door, at which point he tried to run away but they caught him,” said policeman A M, 31. He added that the defendant confessed to him and asked for forgiveness.
salamir@thenational.ae
