It really is concerning that 23-year-old Emirates flight attendant Derrin Crawford remains jailed in a Dubai prison. Either we are missing something from the story or you really need to watch your company when visiting the UAE.
Emirates Flight Attendant Jailed Over Joints In Boyfriend’s Apartment
As told by Crawford’s attorney, Crawford was on a date with a British expat when police raided his apartment. Crawford was arrested on “suspicion of possession of illegal narcotics with intent to supply” after two marijuana joints and some pills were found. A drug test was performed and came back negative: nothing was found in her system.
This occurred on June 21st. Almost a month later, Crawford remains in jail awaiting the decision of Dubai’s Public Prosecution Service on whether to prosecute her. She is apparently surviving on bread and jam in a Dubai jail and developed septic tonsilitis.
A Dubai Police spokesperson told the UK DailyMail:
“Two British nationals were arrested on suspicion of possession of narcotics with the intent to supply.
“They were taken into custody and charged with possession of cannabis, pills, and other items that are classified as illegal substances in the United Arab Emirates. The Dubai Police has referred the case to the Public Prosecution and the accused are currently out on bail.
“The UAE has a zero-tolerance policy for the recreational use of drugs. The penalty for personal possession can be up to 10 years imprisonment, and drug trafficking can result in a life sentence.”
Something in the story doesn’t add up. The couple was not indicted under the Tawajed Clause, a portion of Dubai’s morality code which states that people of opposite sex cannot be alone together unless they are married or family. Those laws are rarely enforced in Dubai, but remain on the books. But why would the police happen barge in on a date? Talk about bad timing…
Crawford’s attorney says there were only two joints…but is that the case? What about the other pills? How many were there and what were they for? The UAE has strict laws in this area as well, with many over-the-counter drugs in much of the world requiring a prescription in the UAE.
My gut tells me there’s a lot more to this story.
CONCLUSION
Dubai has very strict laws on drug possession. Two joints theoretically could land you in a jail for 10 years. Maybe that’s it. Maybe Crawford was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. If so, I hope she is quickly released and allowed to exit the country.
Just DO NOT travel to that despicable country. ALL bloggers please start warning people to never travel to the UAE.
I went there last yr and fell in love with the country as we are brainwashed into believing we are the best country and ive got business there soon and cant wait to go back was there for 8 days and went all over the country everywhere
My guess is that she rebuffed some small peen emirati and he’s flexing his power/influence to teach her a lesson.
Well she does appear to be a prostitute. I’m sure her “boyfriend” was of the one night variety, and that there was cash exchanged. Maybe now she will learn to respect the laws of the country in which she resides.
That’s my guess as well. She should’ve done that on a layover in a country where that’s not prosecuted.
@andy k How you know she a prostitute
You know her ??
Maybe you should look at mirror to see how you look
These girls meet lots of “boyfriends” on-board and thru Instagram.
Presumably if there was more to the story then either the government or her lawyer would have brought it up to parade their case to the public. Personally, I avoid the UAE since they have one set of laws for locals and another for everyone else. Remember the Dutch woman who was gang raped in the hotel that employed her, then when she reported it to the police she was jailed for adultery? I know that the incels who commented previously will doubtless always find a way to blame the woman but this case resembles that in that a young foreign woman is imprisoned for no apparent or rational reason.
If you do the crime you must do the time.
Matthew, you may want to ask yourself why any of your posts that involve women end up attracting the most misogynistic comments. Linking to irrelevant photos that grace the Facebook pages of a lot of 20-somethings might make you complicit.
Are you saying she’s not a s***? She met this guy on Tinder and the Dubai authorities should have arrested them on that basis. Such debauchery is not permitted in the UAE.
Huey, the language is inappropriate. Don’t make assumptions about people.
Is it not a reasonable conclusion based upon the way she dresses and represents herself online? What kind of person with any self-respect would horror themselves out in this way????!!!!!
Based on his name and words, Huey is clearly a troll. Seriously though, why link to those Facebook photos?
+1
Well, it wasn’t to insinuate she was a slut. It was to generate clicks…not going to try to lie.
The quote above mentions that she was arrested on “suspicion of possession of illegal narcotics with intent to supply” after two marijuana joints and some pills were found. The article doesn’t say where they were found. It’s certainly different if they were hidden in a stack of his underwear in his luggage, or if they were found in her purse. I suspect most drug smugglers would test negative for using the drugs they are smuggling so I don’t think a negative test proves a person’s innocence. If anything, possessing drugs without evidence of taking them would be an argument for intent to distribute. Of course if she didn’t know about them and is truly innocent, then I hope it gets sorted out, her name will be cleared, and she can leave the UAE soon.
I personally enjoy visiting countries like UAE and others in the Middle East / SE Asia where drugs are not tolerated. Societies where drugs are not tolerated and people have a tendency to follow laws (i.e. UAE) are much safer in almost every aspect (except perhaps traffic safety) 🙂
We don’t know where they were found beyond in her boyfriend’s apartment.
Don’t go to Dubai why people want go there ?
Dubai rightfully have a bad rap for repressive and quasi-judicial practices, but this story just doesn’t add up. There’s something going on here beyond the drug story. That said, the actual story could be worse.
When you’re in some locale where law enforcement can be capricious, be it Dubai or the American South, you’d best be on your best behavior and avoid unnecessary travel there.
I traveled to Dubai, traveled through Dubai multiple times a year. Every thing works fine in the airport, hotels, clubs where one can meet gorgeous girls from all over the world can take them to hotel rooms for a reasonable price.
Drinking alcohol and dating women is although crimes in books they are never prosecuted.
Most of the men I know go to Dubai for that.
But problem is I hear many stories of selective prosecution.
When any foreigner does not respect the law, the enforcers of the law, especially if accused is a female they are jailed prosecuted and sentenced.
That’s the bottom line.
We don’t know the whole story, but some of this smacks of an episode of “Locked Up Abroad”. What is it with Brits and illicit drug use? You are so addicted to marijuana that you’re fooling around with it in the UAE? How stupid is this guy? And how stupid is the FA for hanging out with a lowlife like this?
Consequences,,,,
One needs to understand this, Dubai police doesn’t go about raiding homes just for the fun of it. Either the guy or the girl must’ve been under radar for long and then caught in action. This is an angle I can strongly defend as I grew up in Dubai as an expat. There is more to the story than what meets the eye. One more thing, this thing about living off jam and bread for her entire stay, let me inform you that it is served only once during breakfast which is served early morning and the other two meals comprise of proper meals which is sufficient as a whole meal for a person. I work closely with lawyers. Should she be suffering from a medical condition, a doctor visits every day at 10 am so I’m pretty sure she must’ve been attended to well. My advice for those criticising Dubai without experiencing it first hand, kindly do not be so judgemental about it without visiting and experiencing the different aspects of the country first hand.
She’s certainly not making a strong case for the moral type by looking at her online images…
Dubai & the UAE is a fantastic place to live & work…so long as you observe the minimal very strict laws…everyone knows the penalty for drugs (& alcohol consumption if you do not have a license…) & as Shaikh above said, Dubai Police do not make house calls without some prior intelligence/surveillance…
Seems to be just too many coincidences with this woman on that evening…& her reasons are all very lame…she perhaps should have been more selective with her ‘clients’…& Dubai Police are both very wise & can be subtlely tolerant of ‘toms’ & the service they provide…except when they work for the state-owned flag-carrier airline….of course…
& she can kiss goodbye to that Emirates job…senior management will not tolerate her bringing the good company name into this kind of trouble…& I guarantee she will not be able to book a flight with them for a very long time…she’ll be flying home on Tajik Air via Baghdad, Kabul, Damascus, Tripoli & Robin Hood Airport…!!!
Finally…the fact she claimed she was only being fed biscuits & jam & moaning about her prison conditions is a massive mistake of hers & all her friends’ part…they serve good food, have access to a doctor, the authorities will not be impressed to see her tales being splashed across the international media…
I live in Dubai (though I am not emirati) and I personally think that this is the law, and her sentence is ok. Please reside by the law and don’t get yourself arrested ANYWHERE in the world.