A British man's dream of a luxurious life in Dubai turned into a 19-month nightmare when he was wrongly imprisoned for a crime he did not commit.
From Tax-Free Luxury to a Prison Cell
Luke Tully, 47, relocated from north London to Dubai in 2018 to pursue his ambition of running restaurants. The businessman was reportedly earning at least £8,000 per month and enjoying the benefits of the tax-free city. However, his world shattered when police swarmed his home and arrested him.
The ordeal began after Tully befriended a man who arranged VIP tables at a glitzy Dubai nightclub. This individual frequently brought large groups to Tully's restaurants, leading the Brit to consider him a friend. The situation turned disastrous when this acquaintance was caught with two grams of cocaine.
A Violent Arrest and Coerced Confession
"Then, one night, he got caught with two grams of cocaine," Tully recounted. "The police went back to his place and found another four grams of coke and about 10,000 Dirhams." Officers then allegedly threatened the man and his girlfriend before searching his phone, where they found an old message from Tully about booking a restaurant table.
Misinterpreting this as a code for drug deals, a squad of 12 plain-clothed officers descended on Tully's home. "I was about to go and watch Arsenal play Newcastle – and they kicked the door off the hinges and came rushing in," he said. Tully initially feared he was being kidnapped.
He claims the police beat him, punched him in the stomach, and slapped him across the face with a wet slider. They also allegedly threatened to throw him from his balcony and tapped his head with an iron, threatening to crack his skull. "He wanted me to sign a statement in Arabic and he was telling me I’d never see my kid again," Tully stated.
Life in a 'Hellhole' Prison and Eventual Release
Despite no drugs being found at his property and testing negative for illegal substances, Tully was convicted and thrown into one of Dubai's notorious prisons without a trial, he claims. He described the jail as a "hellhole" where he was surrounded by paedophiles, rapists, and abusers, including one man who had "sex with a goat".
The conditions were horrific, with 200 inmates sharing just 10 toilets and showers. Three weeks into his imprisonment, a meeting with the British Embassy revealed the gravity of his situation: he could face the death penalty or life behind bars if found guilty.
After 19 months, the case against him collapsed and he was deported back to the UK. Remarkably, Tully said he does not regret moving to Dubai, stating that the experience taught him a lot about himself.
