Teacher accused of groping schoolgirl while taking selfie with her

Dubai: A schoolteacher kissed and molested a 17-year-old student while taking a selfie with her inside the classroom, a court heard on Sunday.

The Lebanese chemistry teacher, O.M., was dictating notes to his Canadian student when he stood beside her desk and convinced her to take a photo with him in the school at Al Garhoud in May.

The teacher is believed to have shown the girl several photos, according to records, that he claimed to taken with the victim’s classmates.

Prosecutors charged O.M. with molesting the girl.

The defendant, who is in custody, pleaded not guilty when he appeared before the Dubai Court of First Instance on Sunday.

“That did not happen,” the suspect told presiding judge Shaikha Hamad.

Prosecutors said the suspect abused the fact that he was alone with the girl in the class when he groped and kissed her.

The student told prosecutors that the incident happened after the teacher had dictated notes to her.

“He came and stood beside my desk and chatted about something not academic. He said I was like his sister and showed me several photos on his mobile that he claimed to have clicked with other classmates on his birthday. He asked to take a photo of us together and drew his face close to mine … he kissed me and touched my back and stomach. I got annoyed when he clicked a second photo. Then I went to sign on the attendance book before I left … I felt a hand on my belly and it turned out to be O. M. I stormed out of the school angrily and went home. I told the supervisor what happened the next day,” testified the girl.

The student’s mother testified to prosecutors that her daughter was upset when she returned home that day.

“Usually she tells me what has happened with her in school … this time she didn’t. We went for a swim later in the afternoon and she didn’t say anything. The next morning while I was dropping her to school she asked me strange questions. She asked me how I would escape a strange situation. Then she went entered her school. Later during the day, her supervisor told me over the phone that she had been molested,” claimed the mother.

Records said the defendant’s mobile phone contained photos of him with some schoolgirls.

M.N. was quoted as telling prosecutors that he had been joking when he touched her back and stomach.

The court refused the suspect’s bail request. The trial continues.