Dubai: An Emirati student faces four years in jail after a court convicted her of consuming drugs, although she claimed that her ex-husband coerced her into smoking hashish.
The Dubai Court of First Instance on Monday found the 24-year-old student, F.K., guilty of consuming drugs. She had pleaded not guilty and said: "My divorcee forced me to do so and I didn't know that it was drugs."
Her lawyer Jasem Al Naqbi said before Presiding Judge Hamad Abdul Latif Abdul Jawad: "She didn't have any criminal motive to take drugs… she was earlier beaten and forced by her ex-husband who forcibly gave her abortion pills.
"When she complained to the police, her divorcee made her smoke a hashish cigarette before he maliciously informed the police. He coerced her to waive her complaint in the forced abortion case and for which he was convicted."
Court records showed the Appeals Court sentenced the Emirati ex-husband, S.A., to three months in jail after he was convicted of endangering her life by forcing her to take abortion pills. He was also convicted of threatening to kill her.
Al Naqbi argued before the court F.K. took the cigarette from her ex-husband without knowing it was filled with hashish.
The court also disregarded Al Naqbi's request to refer F.K. to a medical committee to be treated for drug addiction according to article 42 of the Federal Penal Law
