A UAE-based couple who was charged with having a relationship outside of marriage will be sent to jail for one year, Khaleej Times reported.
"The Federal Supreme Court in Abu Dhabi upheld an earlier ruling by a lower court that found the Arab man and woman guilty of having relations out of wedlock and violating online laws," the English-language daily wrote.
The man and woman were prosecuted by authorities after investigations revealed they had spent time alone in private.
Court documents stated the charges were held because the act is considered a sin under sharia law, as the duo aren't married or related to one another.
The couple was also charged with "beautifying sin," because the man had shared "intimate" photos of them on Instagram and WhatsApp.
He was later prosecuted for violating the UAE's information technology laws.
A complicated legal battle
The latest verdict in the case comes after the couple appealed their original one year sentence several times.
Winning two appeals, the pair previously had their sentence reduced to a fine of Dh10,000 ($2,722).
However, prosecutors refused to let go of the case and took it to the UAE's top court, arguing that the appealed verdict violated the country's penal code.
"The Supreme Court then decided to cancel the Court of Appeals' sentence and maintained the first court's original ruling," Khaleej Times reported.