Man handed 3-year prison term for molesting minor

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

The court declared the defendant guilty of sexually assaulting the 15-year-old girl while in his vehicle on two different occasions in mid-September and handed him a three-year prison term.

Court papers said the defendant and the victim became friends via social media (Facebook).

The two agreed to meet and the defendant took her for rides in his vehicle.

"The defendant molested the child on two different occasions and convinced her to send him photos of her half-naked," court transcripts said.

The child also gave the victim some money but the matter was discovered by the victim’s family, the court documents added.

The victim's family 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 and contradictory statement by the victim".

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

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