Fahad Al Mukrashi, Correspondent
Muscat: A 40-year-old man has been sentenced to five years in jail for repeatedly raping three children in Rustaq province last year.
He was also fined 5,000 Omani riyals (Dh47,701) by the Rustaq Criminal Court.
According to the case documents, the rapist took advantage of the poor family’s living conditions and raped three brothers aged seven, nine and 11.
The man, a neighbour to the family, frequently entered the house as the elderly father of the victims trusted him.
Their mother died from cancer some years ago.
The perpetrator raped the children for some time until officials at the Ministry of Social Development found out about the crimes, following a report from a resident in the area.
The family did not wish to comment on the case.
Article 72 of Oman’s Penal Law stipulates that anyone who rapes or sexually assaults a child could face up to 15 years in prison and a fine of at least 5,000 riyals.
Many Omanis called for a harsher penalty for the perpetrator in light of the heinous crime he committed.
Mohammad Al Rawas, a Twitter user, said he deserved capital punishment, or at least a life sentence.
Mohammad Said, another user, said such a lenient penalty encouraged many to commit similar crimes.
There is no official figure about the number of rape cases in the country, but an official at the Royal Oman Police (ROP), has said rape cases are very rare.
