British woman faces jail after ‘seeing fight’ in Dubai hotel
A BRITISH woman faces jail in Dubai after witnessing an argument in a hotel lobby.
Asa Hutchinson, 21, was arrested after a group of her male friends began taking selfies with a Swedish man in his 50s who had fallen asleep on a couch.
When he woke up, the enraged technology company executive began punching the men, who fled the scene having suffered blows to the face and head. Miss Hutchinson claims she wasn’t with her friends when the row broke out, but returned to the hotel lobby after hearing a commotion – only to be arrested by police. She has been charged with assault and theft and faces the threat of a custodial sentence.
Miss Hutchinson said: “The man called the police and made official complaints about the boys for taking pictures of him, and for being rude.”
Taking pictures of someone without their consent and aggressive behaviour are illegal in Dubai and punishable by jail time.
Since the incident, Miss Hutchinson’s boyfriend and others in the party managed to get their passports back by paying cash deposits before flying home to the UK.
The Swedish man then made the decision to transfer the charges to Miss Hutchinson after learning that she lived in the UAE.