Man sentenced to 7 years in prison for attempting to have sex with a mahram

A man from Male’ City has been sentenced to seven years in prison for attempting to perform a sexual act with a mahram - a family member with whom marriage is considered permanently unlawful or haram.

The Criminal Court delivered its judgement on Thursday, finding him guilty under Article 22 of the Sexual Offenses Act.

The offense of attempt to perform a sexual act with a mahram carries a prison sentence of seven to 10 years.

The court found him guilty of the offense and sentenced him to seven years in prison.

The Criminal Court did not upload the full judgement in the case, citing the need to uphold the moral principles of society.

But a summary of the judgement shows that an unspecified period of his prison sentence was cut for time served during detention.

In Islamic sharia, a mahram is a person with whom marriage is haram because of their close blood relationship or because of breastfeeding or because they are related by marriage. This includes:

• Parents
• Grandparents
• Siblings
• Children, stepchildren
• Grandchildren
• Aunts, uncles
• Nieces, nephews
• Spouses of children