A housewife who was out running at a public park during Ramadan was sexually assaulted then robbed, a Dubai court heard on Sunday.
The Ethiopian woman, 21, said that on June 2 at about 10pm a man stopped her as she was exercising in a park in Al Rashidiya.
“He asked for my number and said he wanted to know me more,” said the woman, who ignored him and walked away but noticed him following her.
“I walked faster but he caught up with me and, all of a sudden, he stuck his body to mine and squeezed me with both arms,” she said.
The 25-year-old defendant, a mechanic, allegedly touched her from behind then grabbed her hand firmly and snatched her Samsung phone before running off.
The housewife told the park’s security guard and he called police.
“Three days later while at the park, I met an Emirati woman and we started chatting,” the housewife said.
“I told her about what happened, she told me the same thing happened to her as well. That minute, we saw the defendant at the park with some men.”
The Ethiopian woman then called her husband and police to tell them that the man was there and officers arrived and apprehended him.
“We found the phone with him and he admitted assaulting her sexually,” said an Emirati policeman, 26.
The accused admitted charges of sexual assault and theft at Dubai Criminal Court on Sunday morning. He awaits a verdict on August 22.