Marcus Fakana (Detained in Dubai)
An 18-year-old Londoner has been ordered to serve a year in prison in Dubai after a ‘holiday romance’ with a girl who had been 17 at the time.
Marcus Fakana was charged by Dubai authorities after having an alleged “holiday romance” with a 17-year-old staying at the same hotel, with whom he planned to carry on a relationship with on their return home.
He’s expected to appeal against his sentence.
Radha Sterling, the CEO of Detained in Dubai, said: “Marcus feels abandoned by the British government and Keir Starmer who just spent the weekend in the UAE.”
She added: “He was desperately hoping to come home this week but prosecutorial mishandling in the first stages of the case meant it wasn’t heard as a misdemeanour when it should have been.
“The family have issued a plea to Dubai ruler, HH Sheikh Mohammed Al Maktoum to spare Marcus for consensual sex with another British citizen.”
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson previously said: “We are supporting a British man in the UAE and are in contact with his family.”
More to follow.