Norwegian woman, jailed for illicit sex, granted pardon

Norwegian woman, jailed for illicit sex, granted pardon Marie Nammour / 22 July 2013 A prosecution source has confirmed that the Norwegian woman, who was jailed for having illicit sex and giving false report to the authorities about being raped, has been granted pardon. “Her case has reached authorities beyond the Public Prosecution including the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” the source told Khaleej Times. Marte Deborah Dalelv, in a statement to a Press agency said that she was given back her passport by the Attorney-General’s office and the case was dropped against her which made her free to leave the UAE. The 42-year-old woman, who works as an interior design executive, has been sentenced by the Court of Misdemeanours to 16 months in jail, followed by deportation, for falsely reporting a rape, having sex-out-of the wedlock and consuming alcohol. Her lawyer has already appealed the sentencing and a hearing was scheduled for September 5. She alleged to the police and prosecutors that her Sudanese boss raped her in his hotel room in the Safa area in Bur Dubai in March, taking advantage that she was under the influence of alcohol. The man was sentenced to 13 months in jail and deportation. She had been on a business trip with him when the incident happened. Marte’s case has created media frenzy in the west after she told her story to the Press recounting her ordeal and shock over being held in custody for reporting a rape. She claimed that during the interrogation, she changed her testimony claiming to the investigators that she had consensual sex in a desperate bid to get a reduced sentence. mary@khaleejtimes.com Taylor Scott International