Abu Dhabi: A widow from Kerala is seeking help from the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi to prove her son’s innocence after he was jailed for a drug offence here.
In her petition to the Indian Ambassador, Jancy Manuel, 59, from Cochin, alleged her son K.M. Shiju was trapped when he innocuously agreed to deliver a parcel from Cochin to Abu Dhabi for a friend.
Shiju, who was working as a fabricator in Abu Dhabi since December 2013, had gone to Kerala on emergency leave to attend his father’s funeral on May 31.
He was reportedly arrested and detained by Abu Dhabi Police on June 18 on arrival from Cochin after authorities seized an unspecified amount of heroin from his baggage.
“My brother is not a smuggler. He came home for his father’s funeral. He was trapped,” Shiju’s brother Joshy told XPRESS over phone from Kerala.
“An acquaintance named Amal handed over a parcel to Shiju at the Nedumbassery Airport, requesting him to deliver it to one Saarang in Abu Dhabi. He was told the packet contained two MBA books and two shirts,” said Joshy.
Arrest
Joshy said Amal was part of a drug syndicate operating out of Kerala and cheated his brother into peddling drugs to the UAE. “We came to know of Shiju’s arrest through his friends in Abu Dhabi. He had spoken to them soon after he landed in Abu Dhabi. In his last frantic call from the airport, he told his friends he got cheated,” claimed his brother.
Shiju’s family has been successful in getting the culprits arrested in Kerala. Based on his family’s complaint, Kerala Police registered a case against Amal based on the Indian Penal Code. Media reports from Kerala confirm the arrest of Amal, and two others – Ansar and Mohammed Saad, on whose behest Amal had allegedly handed over the parcel to Shiju.
“We have submitted documents to the Indian Embassy to facilitate Shiju’s immediate release from the Abu Dhabi prison. My brother is a key witness against the drug mafia, and his release is crucial in bringing the real culprits to book,” said Joshy.
The family is hoping the arrest and confessions from the accused will help prove Shiju’s innocence in accordance with UAE law.
Sale, possession or trafficking of drugs is a capital offence in the UAE.
A senior official at the Indian Embassy told XPRESS they are looking at ways to help Shiju. “We will write to the Kerala state government to provide us with official documents pertaining to the case that proves the family’s claim,” said the official, adding the documents will be passed on to UAE authorities.
However, the embassy will not extend legal support. “We cannot offer legal assistance to Indian citizens in the UAE. His family should appoint a lawyer and we can help by providing the required official documents,” said the official.
