DUBAI // A Frenchman who taped a small camera to the bottom of a paper bag then used it to film up women’s skirts at a mall was sentenced to six months in jail.
H R, a 39-year-old operations manager, was convicted by Dubai Criminal Court of sexual assault against several unidentified women. He denied all charges in court last September, telling judges: “I have never done this and I did not see any of these pictures in my camera – I have never taken such pictures.”
But on May 8 last year the Frenchman was seen by a shop’s supervisor at Mall of the Emirates standing very close to women wearing short skirts.
“I spotted him standing so close to a woman wearing a short skirt then saw him placing a paper bag carefully between the woman’s legs from behind,” said Pakistani supervisor K S, 26.
“I felt it was strange and kept looking. I saw him do the same to another woman standing near the first one and also wearing a skirt.”
The supervisor thought his actions were suspicious so informed a security guard. “The guard then headed to the man and asked him what he was doing,” said K S.
“I saw him as the guard was walking towards him, picking up the bag and taking a small object from its bottom then hiding it in his pocket.
“The guard saw him, too. I heard the guard asking him about the object he hid in his pocket, then saw the man handing the guard a small camera.”
A Dubai Police forensics report said that the camera was found to have recordings of women’s private parts, as well as 23 deleted files of similar recordings and 22 others of an obscene nature, which the defendant allegedly confessed to having recorded.
The report also found 293 deleted recordings of women in public places, some of which were of women’s intimate parts while others were of women walking around.
Prosecutors said the Frenchman confessed during investigations to filming women without their knowledge but he denied the charges in court.
He will be deported after completing the jail sentence.
salamir@thenational.ae