9-year sentence for man who raped 13-year-old boy

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a February Criminal Court ruling sentencing a man to 9 years in prison after convicting him of sexually assaulting a child in Amman in May 2017.

The court declared the defendant guilty of raping a boy after luring him to his apartment in Amman on May 10 and handed him the maximum punishment.

Court papers said the defendant asked the victim, who was 13 at the time of the assault, to help him move some furniture.

“When the victim entered his apartment, the defendant attacked him, undressed him by force and tied his arms and legs,” the court documents said, adding “the defendant sexually assaulted the child, who started crying, and then released him”. 

The victim informed his family, who immediately notified the Family Protection Unit affiliated with the Public Security Department, the court papers added, noting that the defendant was then arrested and reportedly confessed to the incident.

The defendant’s lawyer contested the Criminal Court’s ruling charging that “his client was mentally ill because it is impossible for a normal person to commit such acts”.

However, the higher court ruled that the Criminal Court followed the proper proceedings when sentencing the defendant deserves the verdict he received.

The Court of Cassation judges were Mohammad Ibrahim, Naji Zubi, Yassin Abdullat, Hamad Ghzawi, and Majid Azab.