ABU DHABI // A senior police officer jailed after arranging for a prisoner to work as a prostitute should be bailed during Ramadan, a court heard on Sunday.
Z S H, an Emirati, was sentenced to eight years by the Criminal Court for cooperating with three Bangladeshis to release of Indonesian, R D.
The woman told the court she was transferred from prison into an apartment on several occasions where she had sex with 10 to 12 men a day.
The police major, along with two officers, would arrange permits for her to leave the prison, go to a brothel and then return.
R D said she was paid Dh12 to Dh15 a client, while the three Bangladeshi men kept the rest of the money the men paid.
But defence lawyers appealed against the sentence. Mohammed Al Khazraji, Z S H’s lawyer, said: “It is Ramadan and the defendants are known as police officers. It would be appropriate to release them to spend the holy month with their families.”
The two other officers, H M and R F, were jailed for three years.
H M’s lawyer also requested his client be bailed, while R F is on bail.
The three Bangladeshi men – S A, M K and F M – were jailed for 10 years for running a brothel and persuading R D to work as a prostitute. However, they were cleared of bribing the police officers.
R D was sentenced to four years for prostitution.
It was not made clear the relationship between the police officers and the men who ran the brothel.
During a previous hearing, Z S H denied the charges, saying they were fabricated by people with a grudge against him as he had arrested more than 11,000 people for visa breaches.
It is believed the brothel was raided about a year ago.
The appeal hearing was set for September 23.
hdajani@thenational.ae
