By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor
In a court decision that will trouble many, a Dutch tourist in Qatar claimed she had been raped while on holiday in the Middle Eastern state.
The alleged attacker believed the sex was consensual and the 22-year-old woman requested money after the sexual encounter.
The Dutch lady was not in court for the hearing in Doha, but was given a one-year suspended sentenced and a fine of around £500.
Reaching this verdict will worry many women who might consider travelling to Qatar, even though she maintained her innocence she was still considered part of the crime rather than a victim.
Brian Lokollo, the lawyer representing her, told the court that the woman was on holiday in the Qatari capital and was having drinks with a friend in a bar located in a hotel.
Lokollo said someone “messed with her drink” and after that her memory began to fade.
She later came around in a strange apartment and her clothes had been torn. It soon became clear she “realised to her great horror, that she had been raped.”
The woman was arrested in March on suspicion of adultery, having sex outside of wedlock.
She maintained her innocence at the charges that were brought to her.
The male defendant was sentenced to receive 100 lashes for adultery and 40 lashes for consuming alcohol.
A Dutch Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said the woman was released by Qatari officials after the court hearing.
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