Cleared Nakheel executive told he cannot board plane home to Australia

Marcus Lee and his wife are told they do not have the correct clearance at Dubai airport so five-year ordeal continues for them and their waiting family.

For Marcus Lee and his wife Julie, their five-year ordeal continues after they were not allowed to leave Dubai on a flight headed for Sydney. Courtesy of Julie Lee

DUBAI // A former Nakheel executive cleared of charges in a Dh44 million fraud case has been stopped at Dubai airport from boarding a plane home to Australia because of red tape, his lawyer said.

Marcus Lee and his wife Julie, who have been unable to leave the emirate for five years, were hoping to return to Sydney after their long court battle but were held for two hours at Dubai airport on Friday before being told more paperwork was needed.

The couple heard that they needed clearance from State Security before they could leave, they said.

“This is just another devastating blow,” said Ms Lee. “Despite being unequivocally cleared in courts, we have been forced to suffer this further indignity. Words cannot describe how we and our families, who are waiting for us in Australia, feel.”

Mr Lee’s lawyer, John Sneddon, said: “Marcus has done everything by the book. There is absolutely no reason for him to be turned back at the airport. He is an innocent man and he has suffered enough”.

Mr Lee, 44, spent nine months in prison and more than four years under house arrest fighting allegations against him.

He was cleared of all charges last May but public prosecutors launched a last-minute appeal, which the Appeals Court rejected in November.

Mr Lee then had to wait for the return of his passport and bail money.

In the past week he arranged what he thought were all the necessary clearances and approvals, including an official certificate from Dubai prosecutors. The Australian embassy was also assured there was no impediment to his departure, Mr Sneddon said.

“Marcus should have been permitted to board the plane,” Mr Sneddon said. “Clearly, the various departments are not communicating with each other over there.

“Marcus and Julie are devastated – there is no other way to describe it. They have spent the last of their money on airfares, which they can’t use.

“Planes are fully booked at the moment and they might have to wait for weeks. They don’t even have the funds to pay for a hotel.”