DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A court in Dubai has sentenced an Egyptian taxi driver to six months in prison and deportation after convicting him of sexually assaulting a U.S. Navy officer.

The National, an English-language, state-aligned newspaper in Abu Dhabi, reported the verdict in its Tuesday’s edition.

It says the 34-year-old Egyptian grabbed the 22-year-old woman’s thigh and forced her to touch his groin while driving her from a mall to Dubai’s Jebel Ali port in March 2017.

The taxi driver was initially cleared of the charge in a lower court, but prosecutors appealed and won a conviction at Dubai's Court of Appeal.

Chiefs caught up in Bahrain sex and corruption scandals Five separate investigations by federal agents netted six sailors for alleged crimes tied to the sex trade in Bahrain.

Jebel Ali is frequently visited by U.S. Navy warships.

The U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet did not immediately respond to a request for comment.