Update as Brit, 22, locked up in 'hellhole' Dubai prison with no shower for alleged drug offences
A 22-year-old from Leeds who was banged up abroad on alleged drug charges is now back in the UK after enduring 'a whole year of hell'.
Isabella Daggett spent nearly 12 months behind bars in Dubai after being accused of being in the possession of illegal substances in March last year.
She was hauled off in handcuffs and imprisoned just weeks after she left her life in West Yorkshire behind for a fresh start in the Gulf state.
Daggett moved to Dubai after bagging a new job as a recruitment consultant, but her clean slate then went kaput.
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Authorities did not publicise the details of the charges that the young Brit faced, however, her family insisted she had simply been in the 'wrong place at the wrong time' with the 'wrong boyfriend'.
In Dubai, there is a zero tolerance for drug-related offences and the penalties for trafficking, smuggling, using and possessing illegal drugs (including residual amounts) are severe.
In May last year, Daggett's grandmother Heather Smith claimed that she had been 'locked up because she was in the wrong company'.
"All I know is that she rang me a week before all this happened and said that she wasn't happy and she knew something wasn't right.
"She was arrested with a lad that was not her boyfriend, who she was staying with because things had fallen through with another house.
"I don't know the whole thing. I'm not sure what charges she has been arrested for, only possession of something - probably drugs. But I don't know for certain.
"We told Bella before she went to Dubai, 'You know the rules in Dubai, play by the rules, don't flaunt this, don't do that\.
"But there was a whole sequence of events that led up to her, inadvertently, being in this bloke's house, where she didn't want to be. She didn't really like him that much."
The grandmother alleged that Daggett had been unable to shower for a month, wasn't given a change of clothes for several weeks and had 'nothing' while behind bars in Dubai.
Much to the relief of her family members, the charges against the 22-year-old were dropped in January.
But as she overstayed her visa while being in custody, she was reportedly slapped with a fine of around £3,000.
Daggett was finally able to fly home to the UK on Friday (20 March), according to the Daily Mail.
A family friend told the publication: "She's only just been released - it's been a whole year of hell.
"Everyone thought she would be straight on a plane home as soon as the charges were dropped in January, because that should have been the end of it.
"But then came this £3,000 visa overstay fine, which absolutely stunk. It felt like one last kick in the teeth after everything she'd already been through.
"There's just huge relief now. They've got her back. That's all they wanted."
Topics: Prison, Dubai, UK News, Drugs, World News
Olivia Burke