A British woman who faced up to four years in a Dubai jail after traces of a painkiller were found in her system has been acquitted. Tracy Wilkinson, 44, a sports osteopath from Balcombe, West Sussex, was arrested in March at Dubai airport as she prepared to board a flight home.
The arrest followed an irregularity with her passport, and a subsequent urine test revealed traces of codeine and temazepam. While codeine is common in over-the-counter medicines in the UK, it is banned in the UAE, where the presence of illegal drugs in the body can be treated as possession under strict drug laws. Mrs Wilkinson had been prescribed the medication by her GP for back pain following a car accident.
She spent nearly eight weeks in custody, which her husband Robin described as 'unbearable conditions.' She was released on bail last Saturday, and a court hearing on Saturday resulted in her acquittal on all charges. It remains unclear whether the acquittal was due to evidence that she had a prescription or because a UAE police doctor had administered the drugs when she became agitated over a visa issue.
Robin Wilkinson, a retired police officer, expressed relief but noted that his wife would not be fully relieved until she returned to the UK. The family hopes she may be free to leave the country as early as today, pending a possible 15-day cooling-off period during which prosecutors could appeal. Fair Trials Abroad, a campaign group, has been supporting the family.
