Visitors deny taking drugs after arriving in country

Dubai: Three friends who were arrested 24 hours after arriving in Dubai have denied consuming drugs in the UAE, a court heard on Tuesday.

The Public Prosecution charged the three Lebanese men, A.H., A.M. and H.B., in their early 20s, with consuming drugs. Medical reports proved that they tested positive for drugs.

"Your honour... you know that a drug remains in the blood for 40 days. We consumed drugs in Lebanon and we got arrested just 24 hours after we arrived in Dubai," A.H. told Presiding Judge Saeed Salem Bin Sarm of the Dubai Court of First Instance.

He also handed his passport to court to confirm that he and his friends 'had arrived in Dubai one day prior to their arrest and that they didn't take drugs in the emirate'.