Man handed over 7 years in jail for molesting minor

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a February Criminal Court ruling, sentencing a man to over seven years in prison after convicting him of molesting a minor in Amman in July 2020.

The court declared the defendant guilty of sexually assaulting the 17-year-old boy in a forested area in Amman with the help of two other defendants who did not appeal their verdicts.

The court handed the defendant a seven and a half year prison term for molesting the boy with the help of the other defendants while using excessive force.

Court papers said the defendants were driving in their vehicle when they saw the boy walking in the street.

"The defendants grabbed the boy and took him to a secluded area in a forest in Eastern Amman where they sexually assaulted him after pinning him to the ground," the court transcripts said.

The minor returned home and notified his family who filed a complaint at the Family Protection Department, according to court papers.

The Criminal Court’s attorney general asked the higher court to uphold the sentence against the defendant "because the punishment he received was proper".

The defence, meanwhile, asked the court to acquit his client because "the court relied on weak evidence".

“The verdict is unfair and harsh since my client is innocent,” the lawyer charged.

However, the higher court ruled that the Criminal Court proceedings were accurate and that the defendant was given the appropriate punishment.

It was proven to the court that the defendant willingly confessed to sexually assaulting the minor and therefore deserves the punishment he had received, the higher court ruled.

The Court of Cassation judges were Mohammad Ibrahim, Qassem Dughmi, Hammad Ghzawi, Yassin Abdullat and Nayef Samarat.