DUBAI // A British man has been jailed for 10 years and fined Dh50,000 for smuggling cocaine in his underwear.
The transit passenger P K, 38, was arrested while changing flights at Dubai International Airport Terminal 3 in February after arriving from Sao Paolo. He was en route to the UK. He had denied charges of possession of narcotics and smuggling narcotics through transit filed against him last week at Dubai Criminal Court of First Instance.
The defendant ingested 94 capsules of cocaine weighing just more than 1kg. He was also found to be in possession of 810 grams of the drug inside a brown bag that was taped to his underwear and groin. Forensic evidence provided by the Dubai police criminal laboratory confirmed the substance seized was cocaine.
Inspectors at the airport arrested P K after he refused to submit to a personal search when a security gate alarm was raised. He initially refused to be hand searched by police but agreed to a metal detector search, officers said.
"Nothing was found in his bags as they passed through the customs detector," said a police officer. "When he was taken to the search room, a white powder wrapped in a transparent tape was found in his underwear and then he was referred to be X-rayed."
There is an alternative in Dubai to being imprisoned for drugs if caught as a tourist. The Dubai public prosecutor's office introduced a policy in 2008 allowing authorities to deport visiting offenders found with less than 20 grams of narcotics instead of being taken to court. The policy states that cases of visitors that are found to be in possession of drugs for personal use would have their cases referred to the Attorney General's technical bureau for review.
The UAE has a zero tolerance policy on narcotics. Those convicted of drug trafficking can be subject to life imprisonment.
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UAE rugby in numbers
5 - Year sponsorship deal between Hesco and Jebel Ali Dragons
700 - Dubai Hurricanes had more than 700 playing members last season between their mini and youth, men's and women's teams
Dh600,000 - Dubai Exiles' budget for pitch and court hire next season, for their rugby, netball and cricket teams
Dh1.8m - Dubai Hurricanes' overall budget for next season
Dh2.8m - Dubai Exiles’ overall budget for next season
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
How to volunteer
The UAE volunteers campaign can be reached at www.volunteers.ae , or by calling 800-VOLAE (80086523), or emailing info@volunteers.ae.