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Original poster

Women detained in Dubai ‘after glass of wine on plane’

260 replies

Aridane · 11/08/2018 13:50

Reading today’s Guardian and came across this.

Swedish dentist travelling with four year old daughter from London to Dubai had a glass of wine on the flight. Taken into custody as had an invalid visa and pending return to UK. Blood test then administered to test for alcohol. As a result of which apparently she and daughter detained for three days and made to clean toilets.

Released on bail, passport confiscated, remaining in Dubai pending hearing in a year.

Can’t do a link as reading a physical newspaper.

Anyone know any more about this? Is there more to it than a glass of wine on the flight and an invalid visa?

Just seems quite odd.

OP posts:
FiestaThenSiesta · 12/08/2018 09:56

Yes Thumwitch because Iran’s embassies around the world have long orderly queues of white women beating down their doors in hopes of obtaining an Iranian citizenship. It’s one of the most sought after passports in the world. Yes, that must be it. Hmm

FFS. Only on mumsnet is someone ready to argue about the sky being blue. Because you know, there’s no such thing as “blue” just our own individual perception of it. 🙄

TheHulksPurplePanties · 12/08/2018 10:05

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6051059/Dubai-hits-row-British-mother-detained-four-year-old-daughter.html

She's got olive/Mediterranean skin, but she's white. My guess is that one of her parents is originally from Iran and she got the passport to allow her to travel their to visit relatives more easily.

AveABanana · 12/08/2018 10:19

If I'm reading the DM correctly this morning, they say one of her sons went out to visit her in prison. Isn't that bizarre? You think you and your child have been horribly detained, you manage to get the 4 yo back home but think yes that's exactly what you need to do, let's get the whole family back over and risk them all being imprisoned?

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TSSDNCOP · 12/08/2018 11:16

I’m starting to think Ms Hollman went to the Thomas Markle School of Meeeeee and My View of Events.

TheHulksPurplePanties · 12/08/2018 11:22

If I'm reading the DM correctly this morning, they say one of her sons went out to visit her in prison.

The DM article is all over the place, at one point she's in a cell, than the airport detainment center, than a canteen floor??

Humptyfelldown · 12/08/2018 11:53

Is dentistry her main profession? Is her cosmetic surgery business just a sideline?

MrsJayy · 12/08/2018 11:59

Did she go out to botox and fill? Seems she is a frequent Dubai visitor

Scabetty · 12/08/2018 12:11

Entitled divas come in various skin shades so why all the white privilege comments. Most entitled spoilt bitch behaviour I have seen was a Singaporean ‘princess’ Confused

BadLad · 12/08/2018 13:46

Entitled divas come in various skin shades so why all the white privilege comments. Most entitled spoilt bitch behaviour I have seen was a Singaporean ‘princess'

I'll see your Singaporean 'princess' and I'll raise you Korean Air's Heather Cho, who delayed a plane because she was angry with the way she had been served nuts by an air steward.

www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-30390724

CraftyGin · 12/08/2018 14:07

I feel so sad for her that a moment’s poor choices may have life long effects on her. It’s a mini Oscar Pistorius saga (mini, as in consequences much, much less).

cariadlet · 12/08/2018 14:48

I feel sorry for her daughter, but don't have any sympathy for the woman herself who seems to have been both stupid and confrontational.

Halfahunnerstillastunner · 12/08/2018 18:22

It’s illegal to consume alcohol, or have it in your bloodstream in Dubai.

So why was I able to drink wine in several hotels and restaurants there then?! ConfusedHmm obviously it's a selective law you're quoting.

Awwlookatmybabyspider · 12/08/2018 18:49

Lipwig. Whats with the "they"business.
I don't think an innocent 4 year old baby had alcohol in her blood stream.

Also if she was served the wine on the plane. Do they not need a kick up the arse somewhere along the line.
Why are the selling alcoholic drinks on a flight to somewhere which does not allow any alcohol whatsoever.

redgreenapples · 12/08/2018 20:12

I'm not saying every word of this if true, but they always say not to believe everything you read in the papers anyway.

Dubai Media Office statement here

zzzzz · 12/08/2018 20:55

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

LipstickHandbagCoffee · 12/08/2018 21:38

The in flight alcohol isn’t the issue
The altercation with immigration staff that’s the issue
No valid visa that’s the issue

Delatron · 12/08/2018 21:40

I’m familiar with her on Instagram and was surprised when they said she was a dentist. She has a well known cosmetic surgery clinic (Instagram profile now disabled).
She does the Botox of some of the fashion Instagrammers. I doubt she does any dentistry any more...

maxthemartian · 12/08/2018 22:02

Why are the selling alcoholic drinks on a flight to somewhere which does not allow any alcohol whatsoever.

Drinks are complementary on Emirates flights and it's absolutely not the case that alcohol isn't allowed in Dubai. I know from personal experience! It's not Saudi.

maxthemartian · 12/08/2018 22:03

Lipstick indeed, not to mention filming an immigration official which is beyond idiotic.

MulderitsmeX · 12/08/2018 22:21

DH and I have had our own poor experience with dubai immigration officials.

dh has rosacea (red face), we were going through immigration when the officer in the kiosk basically started spoiling for a fight asking DH if he was drunk (he was hot ans tired it was 2am and 45 degrees!!), he was then pretty rude and throwing his weight around for about 10 mins before he let DH through. It was very scary and tbh has put me off ever going again. The rest of the holiday was nice but that guy clearly just wanted to scare us for a laugh, not good behaviour. Luckily DH just deferred to him and didn't cause a fuss.

This was way worse than any of thr US officials who can also be pretty ott also.

wowfudge · 12/08/2018 22:27

I just knew when I first read about this that a definite slant had been put on things and the reality of the situation was somewhat different.

PollyFlinderz · 13/08/2018 03:17

I’m familiar with her on Instagram and was surprised when they said she was a dentist. She has a well known cosmetic surgery clinic (Instagram profile now disabled).
She does the Botox of some of the fashion Instagrammers. I doubt she does any dentistry any more...

She’s even claimed that the experience cost her her dental practice and her 30k lifetime savings.

She’s certainly quite something. But not in a good way.

PollyFlinderz · 13/08/2018 03:19

DH and I have had our own poor experience with dubai immigration officials

Have you ever entered the UK and had to deal with the immigration officers as a foreigner?

Give me Dubai any day.

TheHulksPurplePanties · 13/08/2018 07:23

It’s illegal to consume alcohol, or have it in your bloodstream in Dubai.

They should stop selling alcohol at the restaurants in the Mall of the Emirates then.

Technically it is illegal to consume alcohol in the UAE without a valid liquor license. However that is very loosely enforced.

Everyone whose been here any length of time knows that if the police are pulling the old "we're charging you cause you've got alcohol in your system" it's because you've done something so incredibly fucking stupid that they are throwing everything in the book at you (thinking having sex in public on Jumeirah beach and ignoring the cops when they ask you to stop and go home, or repeatedly walking into the women's loo at a busy hotel trying to take pictures, you beat the shit out of your wife, etc). It's like cops in other countries throwing J-walking in with a murder charge, they want to get you with as many things as they can.

TheHulksPurplePanties · 13/08/2018 07:26

Have you ever entered the UK and had to deal with the immigration officers as a foreigner?

I have. Got stopped in immigration at Sheffield. Was only supposed to be transiting through to Heathrow and continuing on. They were very curious as to why I had Chinese and Vietnamese visas and a stamp from the North Korean border, and was on my way to Qatar. (I'm in my early 20's and adventurous was not a good enough answer).

They held me so long I missed my flight and had to rearrange tickets out of my own pocket. Jerks.