Man gets 8 years in jail for molesting 7-year-old girl

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld an April Criminal Court ruling sentencing a man to eight years in prison after convicting him of molesting a seven-year-old girl in Amman in October of last year.

The court declared the defendant guilty of molesting the child on October 1 and handed him the maximum punishment.

Court papers said the victim was walking from her home to a supermarket to buy candy when the defendant approached her with his vehicle and started asking her about school classes.

 “The defendant then convinced her to ride with him and while driving he molested her,” according to court papers.

The victim began crying so the defendant “allowed her to leave his vehicle and she notified her family”, according to court documents.

“The victim’s family immediately notified the police who arrested the defendant,” court documents added.

The Criminal Court’s general attorney had asked the higher court to uphold the sentence, saying “all the Criminal Court’s proceedings were conducted in accordance with the law and the defendant deserved the punishment he received”.

Meanwhile, the defendant contested the Criminal Court’s ruling charging that “the Criminal Court based its decision on suspicious evidence”, according to court documents. 

However, the higher court rejected the defendant’s argument and ruled that the Criminal Court followed the proper procedures when sentencing the defendant and that he deserved the verdict he received. 

The Court of Cassation judges were Mohammad Ibrahim, Naji Zubi, Majed Azab, Yassin Abdullat and Saeed Mugheid.