The Criminal Court has sentenced a man to 15 years in prison after finding him guilty of raping a woman at a guesthouse in Malé.
The convicted man, Ismail Jumaan, of Ismail Jumaan, Kaduroali, L. Maabaidhoo, was found guilty of sexually assaulting the woman after taking her to a guesthouse in Malé during the early hours of March 23, 2022.
During the trial, Jumaan denied the rape charge brought against him by the state, claiming that he had only been at the guesthouse to have a conversation with the woman.
However, according to the Criminal Court’s ruling, DNA analysis, crime scene investigation reports and medico-legal findings established that Jumaan had engaged in sexual activity with the victim. His DNA was also found in samples collected from different parts of the woman’s body.
The court further noted that the medico-legal report documented signs of sexual assault, including redness around the woman’s neck. Judge Muzaffil Nasir stated in the ruling that such injuries were unlikely to have occurred if the sexual activity had been consensual.
The judgment also established that Jumaan had acted intentionally and was aware that the woman did not consent to the act.
Based on these findings, the court found Jumaan guilty and sentenced him to 15 years in prison.
