Dangerous Fun in Dubai

A British woman caught having drunken sex on a beach in Dubai is to be charged with three offences, police said yesterday.

Michelle Palmer faces up to six years in jail if found guilty of having a sexual affair, public indecency and insulting a police officer.

Prosecutors have yet to decide what charges - if any - will be laid against Kent businessman Vince Acors, the man she romped with on the sand of Jumeirah beach after an all-day drinking binge.

Miss Palmer will face a Dubai court once she has been formally charged. She has already been sacked from her £28,000-a-year tax-free job with ITP Publishing.

A police officer spotted the couple having sex on the sand and let them off with a caution. But they ignored the warning and were arrested when the officer returned to the scene.

According to police sources, Miss Palmer launched an angry tirade at the policeman after being disturbed for a second time. She is alleged to have hurled abuse and tried to hit him with her high-heeled shoe before being restrained and taken to a cell

Sex outside marriage is illegal in the Islamic federation of the United Arab Emirates. Dubai police chief Major General Khamis Mattar al Mazeina said: 'The United Arab Emirates has certain traditions and values and is an Islamic country: It does not tolerate such behaviour and everyone must respect our culture as we respect theirs.

Police are so concerned about the city's drunken daytime parties that they are intending to mount a special 'brunch patrol' to catch misbehaving Britons. Undercover officers will be posted in hotel restaurants on Friday afternoons, a time when most local Muslims are at the mosque but the top hotels host lavish parties - and most of the fun occurs.

Two Britons accused of having sex in public on a Dubai beach have been charged with the most serious offences open to the authorities.

Michelle Palmer and Vince Acors had hoped to escape with a caution after they publicly apologised to the police officers involved in the case.

But the pair, who as part of their bail conditions are unable to leave Dubai, have been charged with three offences which could mean a maximum sentence of six years in prison if found guilty.

The triple charges are indecent behaviour, having unmarried sex and having consumed alcohol.

Update: Just Kissing

16th August 2008

The couple were summoned to appear before Dubai's Court of First Instance yesterday in a hurried hearing organised in a bid to ward off the intense media interest the case has generated both in the Muslim country and abroad.

They admitted consuming alcohol but denied the other offences. Legal sources said that unusually, they have opted to represent themselves in the case.

Judge Hamad Abdul Latif yesterday adjourned the case and both Palmer and Acors were ordered to stay in the country until the next court hearing, which according to some reports will be on September 2.

Two Britons who have been jailed for three months for a sexual liaison on a beach in Dubai insist they are "innocent" and will appeal against their sentence.

Michelle Palmer and Vince Acors met at a £60 all-you-can-drink champagne brunch in July and were arrested hours later by police who claimed they had been having sex on the public Jumeirah beach.

Judge Hamdi Abul Khair, who has presided over their case at Dubai's Court of First Instance, sentenced them to three months imprisonment, fined them 1,000 dirhams (£155) each for drinking alcohol and ordered their deportation after their sentence.

But he did not make clear whether the sentence related purely to the charge of indecent behaviour or the charge of sex outside marriage.

The unfortunate couple will remain on bail in Dubai pending the appeal, which will be lodged after the judge issues a formal explanation of his verdict, in two weeks.

Hassan Mattar, defence lawyer for the pair, said: "The verdict shows that the judge was convinced that they did not have sexual intercourse but he punished them for the indecent act of kissing (in public).

Senior persecutor Faisal Abdelmalek Ahli said: The sentence is rather light. I expect the prosecution to appeal.

Under the law of the United Arab Emirates, of which Dubai is part, the maximum sentence for sexual intercourse outside of marriage is one year imprisonment and the minimum is three months, he said. The same applies for committing an indecent act in public.

Ahli said he expected Acors and Palmer to serve their full three-month term in Dubai: Sometimes people serve half their sentence, but this is so short I expect they will serve it all.

Two Britons found guilty of having sex on a Dubai beach have lodged an appeal against their conviction.

Hassan Matter, who represents them, said the appeal hearing would take place in Dubai on 18 November.

I made the appeal today, said Mr Matter. We say they are not guilty.

Michelle Palmer and Vince Acors remain on bail ahead of next month's hearing.

Two Britons who fornicated on a Dubai beach could face longer jail terms after prosecutors appealed the sentence.

Michelle Palmer and Vince Acors were convicted at Dubai's Court of First Instance earlier this month. They were sentenced to three months behind bars, fined 1,000 dirhams – £155 – and issued with deportation orders.

Hassan Matter, who represents Palmer and Acors, said prosecutors have now lodged an appeal against the sentence, saying it was not enough.

Mr Matter said the prosecution appeal would be heard on November 18 – at the same time as the defence argument. Last week, Mr Matter lodged an appeal against the convictions.

Following the convictions of Palmer and Acors, on October 16, senior persecutor Faisal Abdelmalek Ahli said he was disappointed at the length of the sentence: It's very light. It's normal for a sentence to be six months to a year for an offence such as this.

Two Britons found guilty of having sex on a Dubai beach are to be deported without serving any jail sentence.

Michelle Palmer and Vince Acors had appealed against their convictions.

They were caught on Jumeirah Beach on 5 July and fined £170 and sentenced to three months in prison in October.

The pair were freed on bail during the appeals process and a court has now withdrawn their three-month jail terms.

Hassan Matter, who represented the couple in court, said: The judge has cancelled the jail. He refused the prosecution appeal [for the sentences to be increased].

Palmer and Acors were found guilty of unmarried sex and public indecency at Dubai's Court of First Instance.

The British man convicted of having sex on a Dubai beach is still in jail, his solicitor said.

Vince Acors was due to land at Heathrow yesterday. He and Michelle Palmer received suspended jail sentences for public indecency.

Update: Re-arrested

23rd December 2008. See article from telegraph.co.uk

Vince Acors has been re-arrested as he prepared to board a flight back to Britain, his lawyer said.

He was detained at Dubai Airport and returned to jail as his flight confirmation was allegedly not in order.

His lawyer Andrew Crossley said tonight: The return of Vince Acors has been delayed yet again and he will not be returning to the UK tomorrow. The situation is close to becoming farcical and Vince is severely disappointed.

He added: After having booked and confirmed his return flight on three separate occasions through the course of the day Vince was re-arrested at Dubai Airport, as his flight confirmation was allegedly not in order. He has been returned to jail, his precise return is now unknown.

Update: Returned

25th December 2008. See article from news.bbc.co.uk

A British man who was convicted of having sex on a beach in Dubai has flown home, his lawyer says.

Vince Acors was given a jail sentence suspended on appeal, along with Michelle Palmer.

Acors was due to fly home earlier but was re-arrested just before boarding a flight because his visa had expired.

Palmeris already in the UK.

The UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office have updated their travel advice to Dubai to reflect the recent jailing of the Brits caught kissing on the beach:

Women should dress in a modest way, particularly in Sharjah and Ajman Emirates where Islamic law is rigorously enforced. Clothes should cover the tops of the arms and legs, and underwear should not be visible.

Public displays of affection are frowned upon, and there have been several arrests for kissing in public. Sex outside of marriage is illegal, and problems will be encountered if an unmarried woman gives birth in the UAE. These problems can range from a refusal to issue a birth certificate to arrest and imprisonment. A marriage certificate has to be provided to the UAE authorities to obtain a birth certificate. Cohabitation, adultery and homosexual behaviour are also illegal.

Swearing or making rude gestures is considered an obscene act and offenders can be prosecuted. It has been known for offenders to receive a six-month jail sentence for such an act. Particular caution should be exercised when dealing with the police and other officials.

A 25-year-old Dubai hotel employee was sentenced to six months in jail and ordered deported after having sex with a guest, becoming pregnant and aborting the pregnancy, the United Arab Emirates-based National reported.

The woman - a non muslim native of South Africa identified only as MB - was arrested after doctors snitched her up to police after she checked into a Sharjah hospital hemorrhaging from an abortion.

She was charged with committing zina - the Sharia law offence of sex outside marriage - in addition to aborting a four-month-old fetus.

MB could have faced a maximum penalty of five years in prison and 100 lashes, although a prior National article says that the UAE hasn't allowed the lashing of non-Muslims since 2006.

According to the paper, the woman told the Sharjah Criminal Court of First Instance that she'd met an American guest at the unidentified Dubai hotel where she worked and he invited her out one night. They had sex and never saw each other again.

A British woman locked up in Dubai after being caught in bed with a banker told of her relief as she was released on bail.

Danielle Spencer has been languishing in custody for the past 30 days after allegedly falling foul of the Gulf state's repressive morality laws.

She had been caught spending the night with a man after police were alerted after an attack by an angry spurned girlfriend. All three were arrested.

Since her arrest last month she had been sharing a mattress in an overcrowded underground holding cell in Bur Dubai with her love rival.

The amorous couple were arrested for sex outside marriage, a criminal offence in the United Arab Emirates. No charges have been brought. It is expected they will be brought before a prosecutor in the next few weeks.

A hotel worker was jailed in the UAE after reporting she had been raped by fellow employees. She spent eight months in prison for adultery and drinking without a permit.

The 29-year-old woman says she was drugged and raped by work colleagues at the hotel in the Emirate of Fujairah in 2008.

She contacted her consulate for help, and says she received no warning from the Australian officials about the dangers of making a complaint.

After reporting the incident to police, she was imprisoned until her pardon in March 2009. She was imprisoned as it is illegal to have sexual relations outside marriage in the UAE even when raped.

The woman is now suing her country's government for allegedly giving her bad advice when she was in trouble abroad. The complainant says Australian consular officials failed to warn her that she could be jailed for adultery if she reported the alleged assault.

The complainant is also suing her employers at the hotel, alleging they failed to protect her.