A London teenager who was jailed for a holiday fling with a 17-year-old girl in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) begins a one year sentence inside a maximum security prison this week. Marcus Fakana, 18, from Tottenham, was with his parents in Dubai from the end of August when a ‘holiday romance blossomed’ with another Londoner, who has since turned 18.
He will serve his year-long sentence at the al Awir jail, which is also known as the Dubai Central prison for men. The prison houses death row inmates and some of Dubai’s worst criminals – including terrorists, murderers and rapists.
As he surrendered to the authorities to start his stretch at the notorious al-Awir prison, the student wrote: “Thank you to everyone who has supported me throughout my fight. It’s been a long fight but nothing is hard with my Lord and saviour Jesus Christ guiding me. I’m grateful for all the people who helped by donating to me and my family of faith for supporting me.”
In the online post he also called out a fake Instagram account with 150,000 followers, instead directing people to his real profile @M_tside. “Please go and follow it as it will be the only platform where I will be speaking about my story. Have a lovely Christmas and an amazing New Years,” he added.
Detained In Dubai, an organisation which represents Marcus, said the teen ‘feels abandoned by the British government’ following the judgement and one year sentence, which it branded ‘an utter disgrace’ and ‘an embarrassment to Britain’. The pressure group also accused Foreign Secretary and Tottenham MP David Lammy of ‘refusing to help’ the teenager.
But in an interview, Mr Lammy said people should ‘follow the rules’ wherever they go in the world. “It is the case wherever you are in the world – and that’s why the Foreign Office makes clear on its website what the rules are – that you follow the rules and the law according to that country,” said Mr Lammy.
Radha Stirling, founder of the pressure group, said UAE police could have charged Marcus with a misdemeanour like ‘offensive behaviour’ but instead chose to prosecute him with a law normally used against much older men having sex with a young girl. Rather than dragging out the appeal process and risking a longer sentence, Marcus handed himself in to begin his jail time.
Writing on X on Monday (December 30), Ms Stirling said: “Breaking: Marcus Fakana has just handed himself in to begin serving his 1 year sentence in Dubai’s Al Awir prison. He now hopes for a pardon from [His Highness Sheikh Mohammed] and assistance from David Lammy and [the British Embassy in Dubai] to seek a pardon.
“The government of Dubai has handed a lengthy sentence to a British tourist who had consensual relations with another British tourist. Had the couple met just a month later, Marcus would not have been charged. The application of the law in this case is nonsensical.”
‘It was unbelievably painful’
A policeman enters Dubai’s al-Awir central prison in the United Arab Emirates
(Image: GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images)
Miles away from Dubai’s glitzy skyline and stunning beaches, al-Awir central prison is set in the middle of the desert, where inmates face scorching 50C temperatures over the summer. According to a report earlier this year, rape is an “every day occurrence” at the jail, with both inmates and guards subjected to frequent violent assaults, reports the Mirror.
Some prisoners have been forced to endure horror illnesses without being offered medical care. Others have allegedly been tortured into giving confessions. Karl Williams, a Brit who was locked up at the prison for a year in 2012, had electric shocks administered to his testicles and saw men being stabbed to death.
In a memoir detailing his ordeal, he said: “I saw men get stabbed in the neck and others sliced down their faces. Blood splattered every surface as prisoner after prisoner was sliced.
“They pulled down my trousers, spread my legs and started to electrocute my testicles. It was unbelievably painful. I was so scared. I started to believe that I was going to die in that room.”
‘Extremely distressing’
Foreign Secretary David Lammy has been criticised for his stance on the detention
(Image: PA Wire/PA Images)
In Dubai, if an adult has a sexual relationship with a person under 18, they can be prosecuted for having a sexual relationship with a minor. The family issued a plea to the ruler of Dubai ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, to spare their son.
Marcus also received backing from members of the public, with a Change.org petition calling on the Government to offer him stronger support receiving more than 40,000 signatures. A fundraiser called ‘Help bring Marcus home’, also raised more than £35,000 – to which Game Of Thrones actor Kit Harington gave £500, according to GoFundMe.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman previously said of the case: “The Prime Minister recognises it’s an extremely distressing situation for Marcus and his family. The Foreign Office is in regular contact with his family and his legal team at this difficult time.”
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesman said previously: “We are supporting a British man in the UAE and are in contact with his family.”
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