Dubai: An Austrian woman has been sentenced to two months in jail for having consensual sex with a banker whom she had earlier claimed raped her while she was holidaying in Dubai.
The Dubai Misdemeanour Court sentenced the 26-year-old Austrian woman, I.F., in absentia after she missed her trial since it started in February.
I.F. is in Vienna and failed to attend more than three hearings.
The court sentenced the 27-year-old Yemeni banker, A.J., to two months in jail for having consensual sex with the woman.
Presiding judge Jamal Abdul Hamid also fined I.F. Dh1,000 for getting drunk.
The two defendants will be deported following the completion of their punishments, according to Monday’s ruling.
A.J. entered a not guilty plea and denied having sex with I.F.
Prosecutors charged the Austrian with getting drunk and having consensual sex with the Yemeni in December in the backseat of his car in the underground car park of a luxury hotel.
Court records said the woman was with her female Russian friend when they met up with the man and his friend at a pub in a hotel.
A.J. claimed that I.F. drank alcohol and danced, according to his statement to prosecutors, then when he offered to have paid sex with her, she demanded Dh1,200 for a full night.
“She initiated the sexual interaction in my car,” A.J. said. “She removed her dress and during the intercourse her phone rang. Suddenly she said she had to leave. When I gave her Dh500 because we didn’t complete what we were doing, she was angered. I drove away to my home.”
The night before the incident I.F. was said to have met A.J. in a different pub on Shaikh Zayed Road, according to her prosecution statement.
Having been sentenced in absentia, the Austrian must turn herself in and request a retrial in the event that she sought to be acquitted.
“We joined A.J. at his table,” the woman told prosecutors. “He told me that he admired my appearance and wanted to sleep with me. I jumped into the backseat and we had consensual sex. I do not remember if he completed what he was doing. I was in a bad mood because I did not feel like having sex. I asked him to stop and leave me alone. When I left his vehicle, a group of people saw me and called the police, who came and arrested me.”
The woman had alleged in her police statement that the man forced her to have sex with him and she could not resist because he immobilised her in the backseat.
Monday’s judgement remains subject to appeal within 15 days.
