Cairo: A Saudi court has handed down varying jail terms to four expatriates convicted of harassing a fifth, Saudi media reported, amid a crackdown on harassers in the kingdom.
Two of the convicts were sentenced to five years in prison each and fined SR100,000. The two others were given one-year in jail each. All will be deported from the kingdom after serving the terms.
Investigations into the case had revealed that the four Arab expats had harassed an Asian man in a store and posted the offence on social media. There was no word when or where the incident had happened.
In a separate incident, police in Saudi Arabia’s south-western region of Al Baha arrested a Bangladeshi expatriate for molesting a child.
The Saudi police gave the offender’s name and posted his picture as part of a name-to-shame policy.
In April, Saudi authorities started identifying harassment offenders in public announcements as a way of deterrence.
In recent years, Saudi Arabia has sought to fight such offences.
Last month, a Saudi court handed down a five-year jail sentence to an expatriate after he was convicted of harassing a woman, prosecutors said.
The convict, whose nationality was not given, was also ordered to pay a fine of SR150,000.
Under Saudi law, sexual harassment is punishable by up to two years in prison and a maximum fine of SR100,000. Penalties are toughened to up to five years in prison and a fine of SR300,000 in case of repetition or when the act is committed in public.
Saudi authorities have said legal punishment against sex harassment is irreversible even if the victim renounced own right or did not file a legal complaint.
If the victim is a child, a person with special needs, or has been subjected to the act while sleeping or unconscious, the crime is punishable by up to five years in prison and a maximum fine of SR300,000 or one of both penalties.
