8-year jail term for man who molested 7 year old boy

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a February Criminal Court ruling sentencing  a man to 8 years in prison after convicting him of molesting a child  in May 2016.

The court declared the defendant guilty of molesting a seven-year-old boy on May 16 while returning home from school and handed him the maximum punishment.

Court papers said the defendant met the victim in the street and dragged him to a nearby empty school.

“The defendant undressed the child and touched him on his private parts and kissed him on his mouth,” the court said, adding that the victim started crying and ran away to his family whom he informed of the incident.

“The family filed a complaint at the Family Protection Department and the defendant was summoned for questioning,” the court added, noting that the defendant confessed to the incident in front of the police and the Criminal Court prosecutor.

The defendant contested the Criminal Court’s ruling charging that he should get a reduction in penalty “since the victim’s family dropped charges against the defendant”.

However, the higher court ruled that the “the defendant does not benefit from any reduction in penalty because the victim is under the age of 12 as stipulated in the newly-amended Penal Code”.

“The Criminal Court followed the proper proceedings when sentencing the defendant deserves the verdict he received,” the Court of Cassation ruled. 

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