A woman's mother, brother and two sisters will spend six months in jail for locking her up, beating her and starving her for almost 10 years.
Dubai Criminal Court was told that the 26-year-old Jordanian woman was subjected to abuse by her mother, two of her sisters and a brother since 2009.
The victim said her mother installed locks on her bedroom door and windows in their home in Al Barsha after the two had an altercation nine years ago.
Court records did not disclose what caused the initial argument between the woman and her mother.
"She banned me from going outside, gave me very little food, beat me up and instructed two of my sisters to hit me. One of them once hit me with a broom stick and broke my teeth," she said.
The woman's sisters, aged 23 and 31, kept her locked up when their mother was travelling and her brother, 20, often used a Taser gun to abuse her.
Read more: Woman abused by her family for almost 10 years, Dubai court told
Her third sister, aged 25, and her father allegedly knew about the abuse but did nothing to help. They were referred to the court of misdemeanours.
The victim escaped the house in January last year, with the help of her 15-year-old sister, and called Dubai Police. Her mother was travelling at the time.
"I remember her being subjected to all sorts of abuse since I was six years old. She used to seek help form all of us but no one would help in fear of our mother," said the 15-year-old sister, who also said she witnessed most of the assaults, including her brother using a Taser on her.
A medical report from Rashid Hospital showed that the woman had been physically assaulted, has multiple scars on her face and is bald in areas on her scalp as a result of assault. It also showed that two of her front teeth had been broken.
He father told the court that his daughter had dropped criminal charges against her family.
The mother, brother, and two sisters did not attend court to face charges of confinement and physical assault but were convicted in their absence and sentenced to six months in jail to be followed by deportation.
