A British law student has been jailed for life in Dubai after being caught with 50 grams of cocaine, with her family describing her ordeal as a “living hell.”
Mia O’Brien, 23, from Huyton in Merseyside, was convicted on July 25 following a day-long hearing which her mother, Danielle McKenna, says was “all in Arabic.”
Mia pleaded not guilty but was sentenced to life imprisonment along with a £100,000 fine. She is now being held in Dubai’s Central Prison, a facility notorious for overcrowding and violence.
Mia had been studying law in Liverpool and hoped to become a lawyer or solicitor before her arrest in October last year. Her mother says she now feels her dreams have been destroyed. Speaking to Mail Online, Danielle said: "Mia feels she has destroyed her life as she wanted to be a lawyer or solicitor. I speak to her but she can't say too much on the phone. She's just made a stupid mistake after going over to see a friend and her boyfriend in Dubai."
Danielle, 46, insists her daughter has never taken drugs and had no intention of selling them or smuggling them back to the UK.
Mia’s current reality inside Central Prison is bleak. According to her mother, "She is absolutely devastated by what has happened. Mia is being really strong but I know she is going through a living hell. The prison conditions are horrendous. There are no staff really and she has to bang on a big door if she needs anything.
"She's seen fights and said she has been really scared. Mia said she has to sleep on a mattress on the floor and shares the cell with six others. But she's not been ill - she has just come out in a few rashes."
She added that Mia misses her younger brothers deeply. "But Mia is being really brave about it but she really misses her two young brothers who are aged just five and seven. She just wants to come home. I want her home too - she's my only daughter. I was so shocked when she told me what had happened - I would never had thought it in a million years. She can't wait to come home. She said the prison can be scary but she's just trying to keep her head down."
An appeal is expected to take place within weeks. Danielle has expressed hope that her daughter might eventually be allowed to serve her sentence in the UK. "She said she hopes that she might get sent back to serve her sentence here after Ramadan when they might do clemency deals. But she is devastated by what has happened. We we were all shocked by the sentence she was given."
Danielle previously launched a GoFundMe campaign to help with legal costs and travel expenses, but the fundraiser was removed. A spokesperson for GoFundMe explained: "It was removed because it violates Term 9 of the Prohibited Conduct section in our Terms of Service. Term 9 prohibits raising funds on GoFundMe for the legal defence of certain alleged crimes."
Despite this, Danielle has thanked those who tried to help. "Mia has been given a life sentence over in Dubai and she is now in central prison. As you can all probably imagine, as her mother I am absolutely devastated. I haven't seen my daughter since last October. Mia is only 23 years old and has never done a bad thing in her life."
She added: "I just want to thank everyone for their donations so far, this money will be used to send to my daughter Mia, and also for any legal fees that may arise, and maybe even to go towards getting family over to Dubai to see her, as none of us have seen Mia since last October, so thank you all so much."
For now, Mia O’Brien remains behind bars in Dubai, awaiting her appeal and holding onto hope of one day returning home.