Marcus Fakana sentenced to a year in prison

[Zippedydodah]

www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles]]]]
I cannot believe that this lad is going to spend a year in prison- yes, I know that’s the law there, he should have known better etc, etc
I hope that the girl’s mother is ashamed of her actions.
I don’t want to think what the impact will be on Marcus 😥

Well not sure which laws they didn’t follow but pretty sure he will of been convicted under section 411 of the penal code …any person who commits an indecent act with another person who is under the age of 18 can be imprisoned for a minimum term if one year.

… I think it’s the mum!

In my heart of hearts, I feel very sorry for the young couple, particularly the young man as in this country it would have been legal. But this is the problem, they are not in this country and you have to obey the law of the land you are in.

That said, based solely on what I have read in the newspaper reports, if they are to be believed, the girls mother is clearly seeking revenge and not justice, she waited until they got home to notify the Dubai authorities thereby protecting herself when she made false claims of rape and basically outed their relationship internationally. Well done on humiliating your own child and having a young man incarcerated and leaving him to deal with a record of sex offender for his entire life.

I'm not sure what lesson she thinks this teaches her daughter.....but she needs to know that if I was her daughter, I would be hanging my head with shame, not because I had consensual sex with a young man but because she is my mother.

There was a two-month age difference

If he was born in Haringey in 2006 then his birth date is recorded as being in the first quarter of the year so he could be 19 quite soon. The Daily Mail reported that Marcus told police he rented a red Mercedes car and had sex with the girl in the car on one occasion in the hotel's underground car park. If true and he was driving a red Mercedes on holiday that's obviously going to give the impression to the authorities that he is more mature/experienced than the girl who is probably still at school. Although I'm not quite sure how he managed to hire the car at only 18 so perhaps some translation problems there - either way it won't have helped his defence.

Dubai absolutely does get away with it - foreigners are regularly arrested and imprisoned for debt, sex, or alcohol if they are from wealthy countries. Migrants from poor countries working there are often ruthlessly exploited and abused. Going there on holiday has always struck me as a seriously bad idea.

Well, if the daily mail reported it then it must be true.

I find this whole situation deeply upsetting, and I'm very concerned for the well-being of this unfortunate young man. I can only hope that he's pardoned and released early and that he doesn't have to serve the full sentence. Goodness knows what kind of state he'll be in if he does. I'm also finding some of the posts on this thread, especially the jeering Love Island one, very upsetting.

It seems beyond doubt to me that the young woman's mother acted out of vindictive spite and malice. The young woman herself is not to blame at all, and she might well be utterly distraught at what her mother has done.

Thanks, will listen on iplayer.

The thing with the girl as well if we consider her mum to be evil and vindictive is how forced the girl was to hand over any evidence or give any info. We know not how this girl is now living either. For the act of having sex, or now how her whole family is in the public eye, her mother will claim she was righting wrongs and as such it’s still the daughters fault.

So are you saying it's immoral for a country to have a minimum age for consent?

I don't like or agree with what has happened to this poor young man but I do think countries have the right to set a minimum age for consent and have that respected by foreign tourists. What a pity that this particular law isn't more widely publicised.

A boy's life at stake?! It's one year in jail for breaking the law in a country notorious for its strict laws. He's not on death row. He's also not a boy, he's an adult.

Have you any idea what goes on in maximum security prisons in Dubai? Particularly this one. For a black boy (or man if you’re splitting hairs, he’s 18, he’s a teenager). And you don’t think it will have any impact on the rest of his life? Jesus.

How bad is this prison. I’ve watched worlds worst prisons but yeah…

He's eighteen. He is legally an adult and unfortunately has to face the consequences of his own actions. This is happening on a daily basis- people breaking laws and getting their punishment. I won't be losing any sleep over it.

Well there’s lot you can do on your 18th, legally, that you couldn’t before. For instance buying booze at a supermarket. The day before the cashier would be committing a criminal offence selling you booze despite the fact that you wanted to buy it.

You are pretty much the same person but the law draws the line on what is a criminal offence based on age. It’s not a new or shocking concept.

i wonder why the mother did this?
she found the morning after pill
searched for pictures
and was so vindictive she went to the police, who actually took it seriously!

Ok. You sound lovely.

Because in some cultures this is a horrific crime/incident. Daughters carry the honour for their families, and a big part of that is staying a virgin until marriage. I imagine this is why the Mother is so angry.

Just pragmatic. You break the law, there's a consequence, it's really not that complex.

And yet you care enough to post here repeatedly.

Misogyny then.

I'm interested in the law and baffled by people's ignorance of laws abroad and/or belief that because he hasn't broken a law here he shouldn't face any consequences!

Practising / religious Sikhs don't believe in pre or extra marital sex. That applies to males and females.