Dubai: A visitor landed in trouble when drug enforcement officers apprehended him for possessing 1,603 banned pills when he came to stay with his cancer-stricken father in Dubai.
Airport officers were said to have stopped the 31-year-old Jordanian visitor when the scanning device revealed that he had possessed Pregabalin pills in his luggage when he arrived at the Dubai International Airport in May.
Prosecutors charged the suspect with smuggling and possessing 1,603 banned pills.
When he showed up before the Dubai Court of First Instance, the visitor pleaded not guilty and contended that he possessed the mind-altering substance for medical purposes.
Defending himself before presiding judge Urfan Omar in courtroom three, the Jordanian argued: “My father owns a company in Dubai. He fell ill and later discovered that he has cancer. I booked a flight and came here to have a residency issued and stay with him. The pills that were found in my possession are for medical purpose … a doctor prescribed them for me eight months ago.”
During Wednesday’s hearing, the suspect’s father was spotted approaching the bench of judges and handing the prescription to presiding judge Omar.
The father informed the court that the medical prescription was attested by the authorities concerned.
The suspect also asked to be bailed.
Records said the suspect admitted that he brought the pills with him for medical purposes.
Dubai Police’s antinarcotics department confirmed that the suspect tested negative for drugs.
The trial continues.
