Scot secures his freedom from Dubai jail
A Scottish man facing jail time for allegedly touching a man’s hip in a Dubai nightclub has secured his freedom.
Jamie Harron, 27, had been sentenced to three months in prison, but is now able to leave the United Arab Emirates to return to the UK after the case against him was dropped yesterday.
He was arrested for public indecency in July over an incident in which he claimed he had been trying not to spill a drink. He said that “no-one should go through what I went through”.
A Scot sentenced to three months in a Dubai jail for allegedly touching a man’s hip in a bar was freed yesterday after just 24 hours.
Jamie Harron, 27, was arrested for public indecency in July after the incident in a crowded nightclub, where he claims he was trying to avoid spilling a drink.
Mr Harron, an electrician from Stirling, was sentenced to three months in prison on Sunday but the case against him has now been dropped on orders from the ruler of Dubai.
He said “no-one should go through what I went through” after he was told he was free to leave the United Arab Emirates and return to the UK.
In a statement released through campaign group Detained in Dubai, Mr Harron said: “Yesterday, I faced months in a Dubai prison cell. Today, I was phoned to say I could collect my passport.
“The past few months have been up and down and full of worry for everyone. I am arranging flights back home now and can’t wait to see my family.
“No-one should have to go through what I went through. It’s going to take me a while to recover. It is hard for my friends to imagine what was going through my head when I was told I would be jailed for months.
“I am struggling to come to terms with being released, but will be having dinner with my friends tonight before I leave for good.”
Radha Stirling, chief executive of Detained in Dubai, said Mr Harron was contacted by police on Sunday might to say his sentence had been overturned on order from His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
Ms Stirling said of Mr Harron: “He nervously went to the police station today to get his passport, but he was worried it was going to be a trap to rearrest him.
“He is very relieved and in shock as he wasn’t expecting this to happen.
“He has to arrange flights home now, but he should be back in Britain imminently.”
Ms Stirling said the Sheikh ordered the charges to be dropped “because of so much international pressure and the fact it [the case] was affecting their tourism”.
Mr Harron, who had been working as an electrician in Afghanistan, was on a twoday stopover in the United Arab Emirates at the time of the incident on 15 July.
He previously spent a week in prison following his arrest and was later sentenced to a month in prison and fined 2,000 dirhams (about £412).
He has lost his job as an electrician and is now in debt after having to spend more than £32,000 on legal bills and other expenses.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We have been in contact with a British man following his arrest in Dubai in July.
“We are providing consular assistance.”
Part of Dubai’s year-round tourism draw in the region is its alcohol sales, as it is banned in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iran. However, alcohol possession for foreigners is technically illegal without a government-issued licence obtainable only after gaining their employer’s permission, though liquor and beer are widely available in bars.