Dubai: A brother stepped in to support his brother, who is charged with molesting a 10-year-old girl in an elevator, when he testified in court that the case was fabricated over disputes among neighbours.

A 27-year-old Syrian realty broker, A.M., was said to have walked into the elevator of the building where he lived in Jebel Ali and molested the Indian girl in December.

“The girl’s father fabricated those accusations against my brother out of malice. We have had a dispute with the father since the first day we moved into the building over a parking lot. On day one we mistakenly took the Indian neighbour’s parking… we did not know it was his parking space. Since then he did everything possible to kick us out of the building,” A.M.’s elder brother [in his capacity as a defence witness] told the Dubai Court of First Instance on Monday.

“I did not do that. I don’t even know the girl,” argued A.M. when he entered an innocent plea before presiding judge Ezzat Abdul Lat in court.

As presiding judge Abdul Lat was about to adjourn the case, the suspect’s brother stood up and requested permission to address the court.

“I want to give my statement,” the brother said.

“Where you present when the incident happened?” presiding judge Abdul Lat asked the witness.

“I was not present on the date that was mentioned in prosecution records. Actually this incident did not take place on December 18 [as per the father’s complaint]. By that date we had left the building,” said the brother.

The girl testified to prosecutors that on December 5 the suspect grabbed her hand in the elevator and made her touch him indecently.

The father claimed to prosecutors: “On December 13 my daughter and I were in the lift. When the door opened on the fourth floor she seemed frightened. She claimed to me that the suspect had behaved indecently with her.”

Records said the father reported the matter to the police on December 18.

“The father constantly fought with us and gave us a hard time. We stayed in the building for nearly two years during which he did everything possible to kick us out of the building. Due to work, my brother and I moved out of that building on December 10 or 11. The father’s claims were all lies. If my brother supposedly molested his girl, why did the father wait for nearly two weeks to report the matter to the police? We’ve lived here for years and we have never been involved in any wrongdoing or legal action,” the brother testified.

Following his brother’s statement, A.M. interrupted the judge saying: “Sir, I would never do such a thing. Why didn’t they check the surveillance cameras? I am innocent.”

A ruling will be heard on March 30.