DUBAI // A Quran teacher who raped his four-and-a-half-year-old student during a lesson was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
The Bangladeshi defendant, HM, 24, was convicted this morning by the Dubai Criminal Court.
Prosecutors said that in July last year the victim, SE, Pakistani, was studying the Quran with his neighbour's children when the incident happened. "I saw the teacher a couple of times then asked my neighbour if my son could join his kids in the lessons," said ME, the boy's father, 30.
ME added he agreed with HM to pay him Dh30 a month. The teacher taught the boy for two months before the incident.
Records show that the victim's family shared a villa in the Al Hamriya area with three other families. Each family lived in a bedroom.
ME said the one-hour lessons were held every day, except for Thursdays and Fridays, in the villa's communal kitchen. "The teacher would come after Maghrib prayers," said ME.
At around 8.45pm on July 18, the boy's mother called her husband to say their son had told her he had been hurt by the teacher.
"My boy told his mother that the teacher got undressed," said the father in court records.
"My son came back to our room very frightened," said the boy's 25-year-old mother, SE, Pakistani, who added that when she asked her son why was he frightened, he said the teacher ripped his trousers off and hurt him.
The teacher was then confronted by the victim's father and uncle and taken to a police station.
Policeman AA, Yemeni, 45, testified that the defendant told him: "I was wrong and the devil played with my head."
Forensics reports confirmed the youngster had been sexually assaulted as DNA traces of the defendant were found on the boy's body.
The boy told prosecutors the defendant had molested him using his hand twice before.
The defendant will be deported after completing his prison term.
The court's verdict is subject to appeal within 15 days.
[ salamir@thenational.ae ]
