Tourist to be deported after groping female inside hotel lift
Libyan tourist who groped woman inside hotel lift sentenced to two years’ jail, suspended for four, with immediate deportation
A man on holiday in Malta was handed a suspended sentence for groping a female tourist in a hotel lift.
32-year-old Shallouf Ahmed Mahamoud from Libya was arraigned under arrest before magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit on Thursday, accused of subjecting the victim to a non-consensual act of a sexual nature, sexual harassment and related offences.
Mahamoud had been staying at the same hotel in St Julian’s as the victim, who had taken the hotel lift together with two friends of hers and the defendant at around 2am.
Police Inspector Michael Vella said that when the lift reached his floor, before stepping out of the lift, the man touched the woman’s face and put his hand in her pants. One of the women in the lift at the time later spotted Mahamoud again in the hotel reception and took a video of him.
The defendant pleaded guilty to the charges.
Making submissions on punishment, defence lawyer Nicholas Mifsud asked the court to consider a punishment below the minimum in the form of a suspended sentence, pointing out that Mahamoud would still be precluded from entering Malta for three years in that case. “Even if he were to try after those years pass, returning to Malta will not be a walk in the park,” said the lawyer, pointing out that both the defendant and the victim appeared to have been on holiday in Malta and would be unlikely to ever meet again.
The court upheld the request, noting that although the crime committed was a serious one, when compared to the action performed by the defendant, the minimum punishment he would be liable to was very high.
After also taking his early admission of guilt into account, the court sentenced the man to imprisonment for two years, suspended for four years. A protection order was also issued in favour of the victim.
The magistrate also ordered Mahamoud’s immediate deportation to his country of origin.
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