Kuwaiti gets 15 years in US jail for offering whiskey to underage girl

Tallahassee, Florida: A Kuwaiti student has been sentenced by a Florida court to 15 years in prison for offering whiskey to an underage girl and for allegedly harassing another girl.

Attempts by Kuwaiti officials both in the US and Kuwait to reach an out of court settlement with the families of the two girls failed, Al Watan daily said.

The first family reportedly demanded $250,000, but the second family has refused any deal, allegedly claiming that its religious beliefs could not allow it. However, lawyers are still working on an agreement to help the defendant.

The Kuwaiti national, a PhD student and the owner of a café in Florida, is now held in a prison in Tallahassee, Florida, but has appealed his sentence and changed his lawyer.

Providing alcohol to someone under age 21 in Florida is illegal.