RO 10,000 fine, 7-year jail for four expats, Omani for human trafficking

Seven years of imprisonment & 10,000 OMR fine for committing human trafficking offense

4 Expats, Omani gets 7 years in jail, fined RO 10,000 for human trafficking

Oman : On Tuesday, 19 March 2024, Ibri Court of Appeal (Felonies Circuit) issued a conviction judgment against:

Mohammed bin Said bin Yusuf [OMANI], Delower Bapary [BANGLADESHI], MD Asikur [BANGLADESHI], Shah Zeb Muhammad Sadiq [PAKISTANI] and Jahangir Abdul Khalek [BANGLADESHI] for committing human trafficking felony, as defined in articles (9/c) (2/a) of the Law on Combating Human Trafficking and sentenced them to imprisonment for seven years and a fine of ten thousand Omani rials each. The judgment also obliged the defendants collectively to pay two thousand Omani rials to the civil plaintiff for the damages and decided to deport the Second to the Fifth Defendants from the country after serving their sentence and deprive them of entry to the country indefinitely in addition to confiscation of seized items and publication of the sentence.

Investigations conducted by Public Prosecution revealed that the first and second defendants had exploited an Asian victim’s vulnerability by selling her to the third defendant in exchange for obtaining 200 Omani riyals for sexual exploitation. She was then transported from Muscat Governorate to the Wilaya of Abri and delivered to the Third Defendant who locked her in the Fourth Defendant’s room.

She was offered to sex seekers for money, under threat and beatings. Evidence showed that the First, Third, Fourth and Fifth Defendants had sexually assaulted the victim, taking advantage of her vulnerability and lack of resourcefulness. Evidence also showed that the Second and Third Defendants used information technology to commit the crime; the Second Defendant posted information with the intention of trafficking the victim and other women and offered them on the social media platform (WhatsApp), while the Third Defendant presented information on the victim with the intention of luring other people for sex.

Public Prosecution concluded after completing all necessary investigations and collecting the evidence to refer the defendants to the competent court to stand in trial for their crimes.