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Militant Islam Monitor > Articles > Saudi in Denver sentenced for slaveholding and sexual assaults on housekeeper claims he treated her according to Islamic law

Saudi in Denver sentenced for slaveholding and sexual assaults on housekeeper claims he treated her according to Islamic law

September 3, 2006

MIM: According to Dr.Daniel Pipes:

http://www.danielpipes.org/blog/526

click on link for chronology of the case:

Sep. 1, 2006 update: Homaidan Al-Turki was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison by Judge Mark Hannen in Arapahoe County District Court for 12 feloncy counts vis-à-vis his Indonesian housekeeper (unlawful sexual contact with use of force, criminal extortion, and theft) and two misdemeanors (false imprisonment and conspiracy to commit false imprisonment), plus eight more years on other charges. Far from acknowledging any wrong-doing on his part, however, Al-Turki denied havng enslaved the woman or abused her. To the contrary, he insisted that he treated the woman the same way any observant Islamic family would treat a daughter. He then went on and accused the authorities of persecuring him for being a Muslim.

Your honor, I am not here to apologize, for I cannot apologize for things I did not do and for crimes I did not commit. The state has criminalized these basic Muslim behaviors. Attacking traditional Muslim behaviors was the focal point of the prosecution.

Prosecutor Natalie Decker said the trial had nothing to do with Al-Turki's Muslim beliefs. "It has to do with what he did to her for five years. … This is a clear-cut example of human trafficking," Decker said. "It's important he is put in prison." Al-Turki now faces federal charges in October of forced labor, document servitude, and harboring an illegal immigrant.

An Arab News account coming out of Saudi Arabia adds some interesting comments by Saudis.

The Saudi Embassy in Washington would not comment on the case.

"The problem is that in Saudi Arabia, many are going to take Al-Turki's side, and say he was a good guy, which isn't true," said a Saudi businessman working in Washington who is following the case but requested anonymity. "He truly did some awful things." Bakr Bagader, member of the Saudi National Human Rights Society (NHRS), said the Saudi government should ensure that the man is indeed guilty. "If the man is given a fair trial and is found guilty of sexual assault, backed up by solid evidence, then no one should be above the law," said Bagader. …

Legal adviser Mohammed Al-Abdali, however, said he felt like the sentence of 27 years to life is a "down point for the American courts that we used to respect and admire." "There was no justice in this case according to what we have learned," said Al-Abdali.

Comment: Al-Turki's statement has implies that enslaving and raping a woman are Muslim practices, confirming the view that some element of Saudi society sees non-Muslims as fair game for enslavement and sexual licence. In brief, an extreme form of Shari‘a yet rules in that country.

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_4960559,00.html Saudi gets long sentence Man was convicted of sexual assaults on housekeeper
Homaidan Al-Turki says he was targeted by prosecutors because of his Muslim religion. STORY TOOLS Email this story | Print By Felix Doligosa Jr., Rocky Mountain News
September 1, 2006 CENTENNIAL - Sniffles and sobs resonated in a packed courtroom Thursday as a Saudi man convicted of sexually assaulting his Indonesian housekeeper was sentenced Thursday to 20 years to life in prison.

Homaidan Al-Turki, 37, was also ordered to serve eight additional years for theft charges.

He denied in Arapahoe County District Court that he enslaved the woman and said authorities targeted him because of his religion.

"Your honor, I am not here to apologize, for I cannot apologize for things I did not do and for crimes I did not commit," he told Judge Mark Hannen.

"The state has criminalized these basic Muslim behaviors. Attacking traditional Muslim behaviors was the focal point of the prosecution," he said.

Prosecutor Natalie Decker said the trial had nothing to do with Al-Turki's Muslim beliefs.

"It has to do with what he did to her for five years," she said outside the courtroom.

Al-Turki was convicted this summer of 12 felony counts of unlawful sexual contact with use of force, one felony count of criminal extortion and one felony count of theft. He also was found guilty of two misdemeanors: false imprisonment and conspiracy to commit false imprisonment.

The case has captured the attention of the Muslim community worldwide. The Saudi government gave Al-Turki the money he needed to post a $400,000 bond on the charges in Arapahoe County.

Prosecutors said Al-Turki brought the victim, who is now 24, from Saudi Arabia in 2000 to work as his family's nanny and housekeeper in their Aurora home. Al-Turki is married and has five children.

The victim testified in court that she worked seven days a week and was paid $150 a month. She said Al-Turki and his wife kept most of that money. Al-Turki also allegedly took the woman's passport and sexually abused her.

The Rocky Mountain News is withholding the nanny's name because she is a sexual assault victim. She now lives in Aurora.

"This is a clear-cut example of human trafficking," Decker said. "It's important he is put in prison."

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