Supervisor charged with groping waitress

Dubai: A supervisor has been charged with allegedly molesting a waitress while she bent over to pick a spoon in the restaurant where she works.

Prosecutors charged the 29-year-old Sri Lankan supervisor (who is detained) with sexual harassment for allegedly groping the 27-year-old Moroccan waitress in a Dubai Festival City restaurant.

Jail guards failed to produce the defendant, T.S., before the Dubai Court of First Instance's Presiding Judge Fahmi Mounir for prosecution.

He was charged with molesting her on two different occasions.

"On March 22, I was washing the dishes when I accidentally dropped a spoon on the floor… when I bent down to lift it up, the suspect came to me from the back and groped me.

"On May 12... T. S. asked me to take down an order from an Arabic-speaking customer… I was surprised when the customer asked me how much I got paid for dating male customers outside the work place.

"Immediately I told him that I am a conservative and decent lady and that I don't date customers," the Moroccan alleged in her statement.

Prosecution records said the customer apologised to her claiming that T.S. had informed him that she dated men for money.

"I walked straight to the defendant and scolded him… he pushed and cursed me. Then he called me a prostitute saying ‘had your parents brought you up properly, they wouldn't have sent you to work here'," she testified.

Presiding Judge Mounir said T.S. remains in provisional custody until September 15, when the court reconvenes.