Dubai cabbie sexually harasses woman passenger

A taxi driver stood trial at the Dubai Court of First Instance after he allegedly sexually harassed a female passenger.
 
Prosecutors accused the 29-year-old Pakistani driver of taking advantage of the foreign woman, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, to touch her body and pat her on her rear.
 
He denied a sexual harassment charge at the court, claiming it was not intentional. The incident was reported on June 2 to Bur Dubai police station.
 
The complainant said that the driver told her to sit next to him to show him where exactly she wanted to go.
 
"He began asking me personal questions. He suddenly put his hand on me. I asked him to stop but he said he wanted to feel the muscles of my leg. He kept touching me."
 
She added that she had to remove his hand and tell him to stop talking to her. "I noticed he was taking a diversion. He even wanted to kiss me but I told him to stop his moves." She said she was also touched as she was leaving the car. She could not write down the car's plate number. She called the police when she went back to the hotel.
 
A police officer said they summoned the driver for questioning after receiving the complaint. "He confessed that while he was driving the complainant to her destination, he touched her left thigh. He recounted that she was taking the front seat so as to show him the way using her phone GPS."
 
The police officer told the prosecutor that the driver also admitted he touched the woman inappropriately as she stepped off the car. "He confessed his behaviour was wrong," the officer said.
 
During the police questioning, the driver admitted he touched the passenger's leg, shoulder and back. A court ruling will be heard on August 9.
 
mary@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai

Marie Nammour

mary@khaleejtimes.com