Dubai: A soldier who got in touch with a woman on WhatsApp and convinced her to accompany him to the movies before molesting her in his car has been jailed for one year.

The Canadian woman outsmarted her tormentor and avoided a rape attempt when she dialled 999 and kept her phone line open, thus making it easier for police to track her location.

The woman had earlier joined the 23-year-old soldier in his vehicle but he drove her to a desert area on the outskirts of Dubai.

The woman repeatedly foiled the soldier’s sexual advances before he jumped into her seat and attempted to remove her dress in May 2016. Showing great presence of mind, the woman dialled 999 and kept her phone line open in an attempt to help Dubai Police’s operation room dispatcher know what was happening. As she maintained contact with 999 (without the man’s knowledge), she begged him not to touch her and repeatedly asked him where he was taking her to make it easier for the police to locate her and rescue her.

Shortly after locating the coordinates of the phone signal, police were able to locate the distressed woman and rush to her rescue.

In February, the Dubai Court of First Instance sentenced the defendant in absentia to one year in jail for molesting the woman.

The defendant requested a retrial. When he appeared in court, he pleaded not guilty and flatly denied the woman’s claims that he had sexually abused her.

On Sunday, presiding judge Mohammad Jamal confirmed the defendant’s one-year imprisonment.

Two police cars blocked the path of the defendant’s car to prevent him from making a getaway after he had parked his vehicle in a dark spot, records said.

The woman said she had met the defendant at a petrol station two weeks prior to the incident.

“I contacted him on WhatsApp and we agreed to go out to the movies. I parked my car in a mall and he picked me up. We dined in Dubai International City and stayed until 3am. He didn’t take me home although I was tired. He drove around and missed the parking where I had stopped my car. I felt that he had been planning something bad, so I dialled 999 without him noticing and kept it open. I rejected his sexual advances several times. I cried and tried to open the door to get out, he grabbed my neck and pulled me back in. He threatened me. Then he jumped towards my seat and just as he removed my dress and was about to do something, police reached the place. He stopped and returned to his seat,” the woman testified.

A policeman said they identified the woman’s location from the coordinates of her phone.

Sunday’s ruling remains subject to appeal within 15 days.