Dubai: Four women were cleared of assaulting a tourist in a flat, stripping and filming him naked before robbing him of his money, a court heard on Monday.
The Uzbek tourist is said to have found a business card from a massage service, following which he contacted the advertised number via WhatsApp. He was subsequently “lured” into a flat at Al Rifa’a. The incident occurred in June last year.
According to records, the tourist was ushered into the flat by five Nigerian women, who he initially thought were masseuses.
Aged between 28 and 33, the women allegedly assaulted him, then stripped him and filmed him nude. They also threatened the Uzbek man and stole Dh4,500 in cash that he was carrying, before releasing him.
When the man reported the matter to the police, primary investigations led to the arrest of four women while the fifth remained at large.
Prosecutors accused the women of luring the tourist for a massage at the flat, besides locking him up, beating and threatening him. According to the charges, prosecutors said the four suspects also breached the tourist’s modesty when they undressed him and filmed him naked. They were accused of threatening to kill him if he reported the matter to the police.
The Uzbek man told prosecutors that the incident happened shortly after he entered the flat for a massage.
“The women took me by surprise and instantly locked the door. They ganged up against me and assaulted me. Then they stripped me naked and filmed me. They threatened to kill me and stole my money. Once they released me, I called the police,” he testified to prosecutors.
A police sergeant told prosecutors that the suspects were apprehended from another flat where they were hiding.
However, Dubai Court of First Instance found the four women not guilty.
The verdict will be subject to appeal within two weeks.
