Man gets increased prison term for molesting woman

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a September Criminal Court ruling, sentencing a man to over six years in prison after convicting him of molesting a woman in Zarqa in December 2019.

The court declared the defendant guilty of molestation charges and handed him the maximum sentence of four years.

However, the court decided to increase his prison term to six years and four months because he had a previous criminal record.

Court papers said the victim’s husband dropped her at their home and left.

While walking towards her home, court documents said, “the defendant, who happened to be walking in the area, followed her”.

“The defendant touched the victim’s private parts and she screamed to draw attention,” according to the court transcripts.

The victim immediately ran away and reported him to police, according to court papers.

The defendant appealed his verdict through his lawyer claiming that the prosecution “failed to provide any solid evidence” to implicate him.

The defence also claimed that the victim provided contradictory statements, which could not be used as evidence against his client.

Meanwhile, the Criminal Court’s attorney general asked the higher court to uphold the sentence.

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

The Court of Cassation was headed by Judge Mohammad Ibrahim and included judges Majid Azab, Ibrahim Abu Shamma, Hayel Amr and Fawzi Nahar.