Abu Dhabi lift man denies of a string of attempted rapes

An Egyptian man was accused yesterday of preying on Asian women by following them as they left hotels in the capital and pouncing on them as they reached their homes.

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ABU DHABI // An Egyptian man was accused yesterday of preying on Asian women by following them as they left hotels in the capital and pouncing on them as they reached their homes.

In each attack he is accused of waiting until the woman got into a lift before threatening them with a knife and trying to rape them.

The accused faces a total of four charges, all concerning attacks on different women. He has denied all the charges.

Yesterday, the court heard from two men who said they had seen the Egyptian carrying out two of the attacks.

In one case a witness said he and his four flatmates woke to "screams and knocking" at about 4am.

They went to investigate with the building supervisor and a security guard and found a woman lying on the floor of a bathroom with a cut on her forehead and torn underwear.

"She looked like she was about to collapse," said the man, adding that the security guard chased a man who they thought might be the attacker away while the rest of them helped the woman.

In another case, a building supervisor heard screams at 3am, before investigating and finding a man attacking a woman in a stairwell. He said the man fled when he saw him. The accused man continued to deny the charges. "They are lying. I haven't seen them before," he told the court.

The case was adjourned to February 20.