diff --git a/android/paths.go b/android/paths.go
index c5e4806cf..99d5ba7bc 100644
--- a/android/paths.go
+++ b/android/paths.go
@@ -1268,10 +1268,11 @@ var _ resPathProvider = SourcePath{}
 // PathForModuleSrc returns a Path representing the paths... under the
 // module's local source directory.
 func PathForModuleSrc(ctx ModuleMissingDepsPathContext, pathComponents ...string) Path {
-	p, err := validatePath(pathComponents...)
-	if err != nil {
-		reportPathError(ctx, err)
-	}
+	// Just join the components textually just to make sure that it does not corrupt a fully qualified
+	// module reference, e.g. if the pathComponents is "://other:foo" then using filepath.Join() or
+	// validatePath() will corrupt it, e.g. replace "//" with "/". If the path is not a module
+	// reference then it will be validated by expandOneSrcPath anyway when it calls expandOneSrcPath.
+	p := strings.Join(pathComponents, string(filepath.Separator))
 	paths, err := expandOneSrcPath(ctx, p, nil)
 	if err != nil {
 		if depErr, ok := err.(missingDependencyError); ok {
diff --git a/android/paths_test.go b/android/paths_test.go
index c0667dce2..4c18cfda0 100644
--- a/android/paths_test.go
+++ b/android/paths_test.go
@@ -1373,8 +1373,7 @@ func TestPathForModuleSrc(t *testing.T) {
 				}
 			`),
 			errorHandler: FixtureExpectsAllErrorsToMatchAPattern([]string{
-				// The message is broken because PathForModuleSrc corrupts the name during validation.
-				`"foo": missing dependencies: /other:b, is the property annotated with android:"path"`,
+				`"foo": missing dependencies: //other:b, is the property annotated with android:"path"`,
 				`"foo": missing dependency on "//other:c", is the property annotated with android:"path"`,
 			}),
 		},