An Ajman court has acquitted a woman from a Gulf country and another man accused of exchanging indecent messages on Instagram, citing insufficient evidence. The case was initiated following a complaint by the woman’s husband.

The Third Misdemeanour Circuit at the Ajman Federal Court of First Instance ruled that prosecutors had failed to provide credible evidence linking the defendants to the Instagram accounts in question or proving that the alleged offence had occurred.

The case began when the husband filed a complaint against his wife and another man, alleging that they had exchanged sexually explicit messages on Instagram. Both defendants denied any connection to the accounts during police questioning and Public Prosecution investigations.

The woman’s defence lawyer said the allegations arose amid a family dispute. The lawyer claimed that her husband had obtained a replacement SIM card for her phone number, installed social media applications and fabricated the messages submitted as evidence.

According to the lawyer, the husband had previously made similar allegations that resulted in acquittals due to a lack of credible evidence. The defence also argued that the latest complaint was intended to undermine the woman’s financial rights and support the husband’s claim for child custody during divorce proceedings.

Technical investigations also failed to establish a conclusive link between either defendant and the Instagram accounts. Authorities said that because the company operating Instagram is based outside the UAE, account information could not be obtained without a specific court order.

The defence lawyer also challenged the reliability of the mobile phone submitted as evidence, stressing that it had not been proven to belong to the woman.

Citing technical uncertainties and doubts over the authenticity of the messages, the court said criminal convictions must be based on credible evidence rather than suspicion or speculation. It therefore acquitted both defendants.

However, the Public Prosecution has appealed the ruling, and the case remains under review by the appeals court. Defence lawyers have asked for the acquittals to be upheld.