Dubai
A mother, son and two daughters, who confined their 26-year-old sister in a bedroom and mistreated her for eight years, were sentenced to six months in jail each.
The 26-year-old Jordanian sister was locked up in her bedroom and constantly beaten up by her sisters, mother, brother and father since 2009.
The family members assaulted her and never allowed her to leave the residence for eight consecutive years.
The 26-year-old student took advantage of the fact that her mother was outside the country when her 15-year-old sister assisted her in absconding from the house.
She headed to the nearest police station and reported to the duty officer that she had been kept under house arrest [by her mother, two sisters and brother] and deprived of her personal freedom.
In her police complaint, the victim said following a dispute with her family, her mother ordered her two sisters and brother to keep her confined in the bedroom and not let her go out. She was beaten up constantly and provided with limited meals while being confined against her will in the house.
On Tuesday, the Dubai Court of First Instance convicted the mother, son and two daughters of assaulting and confining the victim.
Presiding judge Mohammad Jamal said the four defendants will be deported following the completion of their punishments.
Meanwhile, the father and the third sister will be tried before the Dubai Misdemeanours Court for failing to report the crime [confinement] to the authorities.
The 26-year-old student told prosecutors that her dispute with her family started in 2009.
“Since then, my mother has constantly kept me locked up inside my bedroom. She put locks on the windows and the door as well. They deprived me of my freedom and never let me go out. They also used to beat me … my brother also used a taser gun on me. A sister beat me with a stick. When my mother used to travel, she used to send instructions over the phone to my sisters and brother to keep me locked and assault me. In August 2017, my younger sister helped me run away and I reported the matter to the police,” she testified to prosecutors.
The 15-year-old sister confirmed the claimant’s statement and testified to prosecutors: “She constantly called us for help, but nobody assisted her because they were scared of my mother. I helped her run away when our mother was outside the country.”
