Men 'attacked woman and raped her at knifepoint'

The men attacked the woman as she was walking home from work

Three men are accused of attacking a woman then raping her at knifepoint, Dubai Criminal Court heard.

On May 3 this year, the 41-year-old Kenyan woman was walking home in Al Quoz 2 area after work with a colleague when the two were attacked by a gang of seven, four of whom are teenagers and have been referred to Juvenile Court.

"It was 2.30am when seven men attacked us. I ran to the main road but they caught up and restrained me then took me to a nearby sandy area," the woman said.

Two men and a third teen allegedly took turns raping her while the other men held her and her colleague at knifepoint.

"One was restraining me and kissing while his friend raped me, when he was done, the other two raped me too, they told me they would kill me if I didn't shut up," she said.

The victim's colleague, a 23-year-old Kenyan security guard, told prosecutors that he was robbed by one of the men.

"One was holding the knife and told me he would stab me, while another stole money from my pocket and their friends raped my colleague," he said.

Records show that the men fled after they were done and the woman called police immediately, who arrived within 30 minutes.

"When we asked the women and her friend what happened, they told us about the rape and the knife. We looked around and found the knife tossed behind," said an Emirati officer.

He said the woman described the men, who were arrested the same night.

The three, an Emirati 22, a man holding a Comoros Islands passport, 19, and a Pakistani, 22, were referred to the criminal court.

All three were charged with issuing death threats, which they denied. The Emirati and his 19-year-old fellow defendant were faced with a rape charge which they denied.

The Pakistani defendant denied an attempted rape charge.

The Emirati and Pakistani defendants were charged with consuming alcohol without a licence. One denied the charge, the other confessed in court.

Four others were referred to the juvenile court where hearings are held behind closed doors. Records show that one of them was charged with rape and the rest with aiding and abetting.

The next hearing will be on October 4 to appoint a lawyer for the defendants.