KUWAIT CITY, Mar 3: The Court of Appeals, presided over by Justice Hani Al-Hamdan, overturned a ruling from the First Instance Court and acquitted a man of stealing his wife’s mobile phone and other belongings with the use of violence. The initial verdict sentenced the man to four years in prison with hard labor, followed by deportation.

In her testimony, the wife claimed that her husband physically assaulted her at the university, pulling her by the shoulder towards the exit stairs and dragging her to the fourth floor. She alleged that he threatened her with a knife if she tried to call for help and subsequently took her belongings. The husband, however, denied the accusations. He explained that he met his wife at the university at her request to discuss their marital issues. She asked him to accompany her to the internal stairs and to hold her belongings while she went to the bathroom. When she did not return, he notified the college’s security officer who advised him to place her belongings in her car, which had been left open.

The car remained in the university parking lot for over a month. The husband later cooperated with investigators, explaining the situation and directing them to the car’s location. The defendant’s lawyer, Attorney Bashar Al-Nassar, argued that the initial judgment was flawed and inconsistent with the victim’s statements. He pointed out the implausibility of the victim’s claim that she had called for help without anyone noticing, as well as the oddity of leaving her car unlocked for nearly 40 days without retrieving her belongings. The Court of Appeals overturned the original ruling and acquitted the husband, citing the unreasonableness of the alleged incident and the contradictions in the victim’s testimony.