Imam denies molesting boy in room next to mosque

Dubai: An imam [person who leads prayers] denied in court on Tuesday that he had molested an eight-year-old boy while teaching him the Quran in a room adjacent to a mosque.

"This is unfair. I am innocent your honour, I didn't commit any crime," said the 26-year-old Indian imam when he defended himself before the Dubai Court of First Instance.

Prosecutors accused the suspect, Z.H., of sexually abusing the eight-year-old American boy while teaching him the Quran, along with his ten-year-old brother, in the mosque.

The suspect pleaded not guilty and asked Presiding Judge Al Saeed Mohammad Barghout to pronounce him innocent.

According to the charge-sheet, prosecutors said Z.H. lured the boy to a private room adjacent to the mosque where he hugged him and kissed him on his cheeks. The boy's American father testified that he agreed with Z.H. to teach the Quran to his children for Dh600 per month.

"On the day of the incident, I asked Z.H. to take good care of my boys because I was travelling to the [United] States. Later, my son informed me over the phone that the suspect abused him sexually," the father said.

An Emirati corporal claimed to prosecutors: "During questioning, the father claimed that he ordered his children not to go to the mosque and wait for him to return from his travel… The elder brother claimed that the imam asked him to read the Quran in a distant corner and took his brother to a side room. Ten minutes later, claimed the elder brother, his younger brother rushed into the mosque and asked him to leave… the 8-year-old seemed frightened and alleged that he was molested." Prosecution records said the suspect was arrested in Al Quoz Industrial Area.

The corporal who questioned Z.H. claimed that the imam first denied molesting the boy. "Then Z.H. confessed that he molested the boy… he claimed that during the molestation, the boy hit him with his elbow and escaped," said the corporal. A verdict will be heard on May 11.