UAE woman jailed for three months after late-night cafe fight

Ras Al Khaimah: A dispute over an open window at a cafe on Al Qawasim Corniche escalated into insults and a physical altercation shortly after 12.50am, resulting in convictions for both a customer and the cafe manager.

The Ras Al Khaimah Court of First Instance sentenced the 26-year-old Syrian woman to three months in prison, to be served under electronic monitoring, and fined her Dh5,000. The 20-year-old Syrian manager was fined Dh3,000 for publicly insulting and verbally threatening her. Both were also ordered to pay court fees.

Under the monitoring order, the woman must remain at her residence in Al Dahan and may leave only during official working hours if she submits an official letter from her employer.

Window dispute turns physical

Court records show the woman was smoking shisha upstairs when she opened a window while the cafe’s air-conditioning was running. CCTV footage showed her resting her feet on furniture and pressing her shoes against a street-facing window before opening it.

Concerned that hot air could affect the air-conditioning equipment, a waitress asked her to close the window. The woman refused, saying she was paying for her stay. The manager went upstairs to intervene.

The argument escalated, with the woman allegedly insulting the manager by calling him a “donkey” and accusing him of lacking understanding. The manager, in turn, was accused of insulting her and threatening to break her leg if she returned to the cafe.

CCTV footage showed the woman leaving with her sister, followed by the manager. After a brief exchange, she turned and slapped him. Her sister tried to pull her away, but the woman returned and slapped him again before leaving.

The manager reported the incident to police through the Ministry of Interior’s smart application but declined an immediate medical examination. The woman later attended a police station after investigators contacted her and made counter allegations of verbal abuse and threats.

Lawyer disputes allegations

lawyer Hanan Salem Al Shimili, representing the manager, said her client had acted in his professional capacity to protect the premises and maintain order.

She said the manager and waitress had asked the woman to close the window to prevent possible damage to the air-conditioning equipment. The manager consistently denied insulting or threatening her, the lawyer said.

Al Shimili questioned the credibility and timing of the woman’s complaint, noting that her client reported the alleged assault shortly after the incident, while the woman complained several days later.

She also disputed the woman’s account of an alleged request for her phone number, saying the surveillance footage did not support it. The lawyer challenged the sister’s testimony, arguing that it closely mirrored the complainant’s account rather than providing an independent recollection.

The defence maintained that the allegations against the manager lacked sufficient objective evidence and stemmed from his efforts to carry out his duties. Al Shimili asked the court to acquit him and return his confiscated passport.

Court weighs footage and testimony

The court considered CCTV footage, police records and statements from a cafe employee and the woman’s sister.

The defence argued that the footage had no audio and could not establish whether the manager had made the alleged insults or threats.

The court ruled that the absence of audio did not invalidate the verbal allegations, which could be assessed alongside witness testimony, the footage and surrounding circumstances. It also found that a delay in filing a complaint did not, by itself, disprove an allegation.

The court accepted the sister’s testimony as corroborative, finding it consistent with the broader sequence of events.

It concluded that both parties had engaged in verbal hostility and physical aggression. The woman was convicted of assault and publicly insulting the manager, while he was convicted of publicly insulting and verbally threatening her. The court treated each party’s offences as linked to the same incident when determining the penalties.

The woman received a three-month prison sentence and a Dh5,000 fine, with electronic monitoring imposed for her custodial term. The manager was fined Dh3,000, with his young age considered a mitigating factor.

The case followed a Public Prosecution investigation that led to both parties being referred to trial. Both were ordered to pay court fees.