Chinese student says she was sexually assaulted by butler at Ritz-Carlton hotel in Maldives, forced to leave without apology
By Carl Samson
June 20, 2023
A Chinese woman took to social media to accuse a staff member of a luxury hotel resort in the Maldives of sexual assault.
What she’s saying: Xu Yitong, 26, a University of Sydney student traveling alone in the Maldives, detailed her experience on her Twitter account on Sunday. She claimed that the butler — whom she identified as being named Usham — sent to her at the Ritz-Carlton Maldives Fari Islands raped her and that the hotel resort subsequently forced her to leave without issuing any apology.
Xu said Usham was sent to her room after she sought help from the front desk to contact her family after her phone broke.
“He started forcing his tongue into my mouth and said ‘I will be a gentleman,’” she said. “He then pushed me to bed and started removing his pants and he put his penis in my mouth twice. He then went ahead and touched me down in my private part and tried to [do] intercourse.”
The aftermath: Shortly after the incident, Xu said she informed hotel managers, who allegedly “made it look like nothing.” She then requested for police.
She said two staff members then took her computer — which allegedly had Usham’s semen on its screen — and a towel he used to wipe it before she told them that it should be handed over to the police only. Authorities eventually arrived, took a sample from her mouth and informed her that results would take a week and that they could not arrest Usham yet.
Xu, who appeared to have bruises all over her body, also underwent a medical exam. Meanwhile, Ritz-Carlton allegedly told her to leave “at the earliest” and that the case had nothing to do with the hotel.
Xu additionally said the hotel resort also accused her of trying to get free accommodation: “You only train your housekeepers to ask for tip @RitzCarlton. I was raped in your hotel and you did nothing. You told me I did this to get a free stay. I paid the full amount to the hotel.”
What the hotel resort is saying: Ritz-Carlton Maldives Fari Islands said the matter is now under investigation.
“We take such allegations seriously and this matter is currently with the police. The safety and well-being of our guests and associates are of the utmost importance. We continue to cooperate with the authorities, and are in regular communication with the guest,” it tweeted in response to Xu’s allegations.
Chinese Embassy responds: The Chinese Embassy in the Maldives said it attaches great importance to the case and that it has lodged representations with local police, tourism authorities and the hotel resort itself. It vowed to maintain communication with local authorities as the case progresses.
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