British teen sentenced after sex in Dubai could see jail time increased to 20 years A British teenager held in a Dubai prison after having sex with a 17-year-old girl could face 20 years behind bars.
Radha Stirling, the CEO of Detained in Dubai who is speaking on behalf of Marcus’s family, said on X on Friday that he is waiting to see if the prosecution will seek a harsher verdict ‘before deciding to whether to lodge an appeal.’.
Now a lawyer has warned that Marcus’s sentence could be extended up to 20 years as he waits in uncertainty about what will happen to him.
The 18-year-old was detained and given a one-year sentence after the secret romance with the young woman, now aged 18, he met during a family vacation, according to Detained in Dubai.
David Haigh, a human rights lawyer focusing on the Middle East, warned that the maximum penalty for similar cases is 20 years.
