Court frees Kuwaiti man accused of wife abuse, hot water attack and firearm threats

KUWAIT CITY, May 19: The Criminal Court acquitted a Kuwaiti citizen of all charges in a domestic violence case and dismissed the civil lawsuit filed against him seeking temporary compensation, reports Al-Seyassah daily. The Public Prosecution had charged the defendant with unlawfully detaining his wife, spraying her with hot water, verbally abusing her, and threatening her with a firearm.

The Public Prosecution insisted that the defendant be punished in accordance with the provisions of the Penal Code and the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence. During the trial sessions, lawyer Ali Matar Al-Wawan, who represented the defendant, argued that the charges were malicious and that there had been a delay in reporting the incident, in addition to existing family and financial disputes between the parties involved. He challenged the seriousness of the investigations and the testimony of one of the witnesses, asserting that the case file lacked conclusive evidence to substantiate the accusations.

The court confirmed the absence of conclusive evidence in the case file to convict the defendant. It noted the plaintiff’s delay in filing the report for over a year, despite her claim that the incidents occurred as early as July 2023. The court clarified that the witness’s testimony was based on statements attributed to the defendant without any direct observation. It found that the police investigation lacked thoroughness and relied on conversations and recordings that were not included in the case file. The court also confirmed that the forensic report failed to determine the nature of the injuries or the date and manner in which they occurred due to the considerable time that had passed since the incident.