KHOR FAKKAN, UAE (1 June 2009) — A UAE dive shop owner and a dive instructor have been convicted of having sex and jailed. Authorities told CDNN that dive instructor, Roxanne Hillier, 22, of South Africa, was sentenced to three months in jail. Her employer, a UAE national identified only as "MH" and said to be in his 40s, was sentenced to six months in jail. An attorney representing MH, a 26-year UAE military veteran on leave to run his dive business, said he will likely lose his lifetime pension, which is 80% of his pay. Both defendants had pleaded innocent to charges they had sex outside of marriage and said they will appeal the verdict. Following a police raid on the dive shop and their arrests, physical examinations to determine if the pair had sex came back negative. According to evidence presented at their trial, when the police raided the dive center, they found Roxanne sleeping alone in a locked room and MH sorting scuba diving equpment after a night dive. Parents fight for daughter's release Freddie and Ina Hillier, who flew to UAE to support their daughter said they will continue fighting for her release. Another daughter, Maxine, who also works as a dive instructor in Abu Dhabi, joined her parents in Khor Fakkan for the trial. Witnesses said after the guilty verdict was announced, Roxanne burst into tears and was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs by a prison officer. Prior to the conviction, she had been jailed for 17 days, one of which was her 22nd birthday. | | Freddie and Ina Hillier, the parents of 22-year-old Roxanne Hillier who was convicted and jailed for having sex outside of marriage. Unmarried tourists considering a holiday in UAE, are urged to select another destination where they will not be jailed for having sex. A source in UAE and a customer of the dive shop told CDNN that Roxanne arrived there last November and appeared to be enjoying her work. "She was a responsible, upbeat type who got along really well with everybody," he said. "There was no indication at all that Roxanne and the owner were involved romantically--I think I would have noticed that." "I don't know, maybe somebody tried to set up the owner for personal reasons--it happens here," he added. "Hopefully, this case will will warn travelers that despite all the money spent to promote UAE as a beautiful tourism destination, it is definitely not a good place for healthy, fun-loving singles of any age to holiday." |
