Dubai: A visitor has been jailed for four years after he admitted that he smuggled 0.52 grams of heroin from Oman — which he intended to consume during his stay in Dubai.
The Dubai Court of First Instance found the 32-year-old Omani visitor, F.B., guilty of smuggling and possessing heroin although when he pleaded guilty, he claimed that he possessed morphine.
The accused will be deported following the completion of his punishment.
When he entered his plea, F.B. expressed his astonishment over how prosecutors copied another suspect’s name and pasted it on the charge sheet against him.
“I do not understand how such a clerical error would appear in the charge sheet. The prosecutor just copy-pasted someone else’s name and mentioned it on the sheet! I am guilty… how could such an error take place?” argued the defendant.
His lawyer asked the court to dismiss the case for jurisdictional purposes or hand his client a lenient punishment.
An Emirati customs official said he busted the defendant when he arrived at the Hatta border on July 26.
“He seemed confused. I asked him to step out of the car and accompany me to the search room. When I asked him to empty his pockets, he took out a pouch that contained a beige substance. I found in his wallet two plastic pouches that are commonly used for consuming drugs. He admitted that he possessed the morphine for consumption,” claimed the official.
Prosecution records said the seized drugs turned out to be heroin after they were examined at Dubai Police’s forensic laboratory.
“I possessed morphine. I usually consume morphine in Oman upon medical prescriptions. I had the medical prescriptions notarised and handed them to the concerned authorities,” the Omani told the court.
The primary judgement remains subject to appeal within 13 days.
