Suspended three-month sentence for US Iraq veteran

ABU DHABI // An American military contractor held in prison for two-and-a-half months for carrying weapons parts on a plane was yesterday given a suspended three-month jail term and a Dh15,000 fine.

The contractor, Nicholas Moody, was arrested at Abu Dhabi International Airport on September 29 after customs officers found the parts in his hand baggage.

Security officials found four pieces related to a rifle, including a gun-cleaning brush and a front grip. The parts were not considered dangerous.

The former US soldier, who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, had been travelling from Iraq. He stopped in Abu Dhabi for a day before a scheduled trip to the United States.

Through a translator, Chief Justice Shehab al Hammadi, of the State Security Court, told Mr Moody that he was free to go, but if he were arrested again, he would have to serve his sentence.

The parts "could not make a weapon", Mr Moody said after the hearing. "That is why I didn't think twice."

Of prison he said: "It has been ... tough. I was treated nicely, but it is not a good place to be." He said he was going back to the United States "as soon as possible".

State Security Court verdicts are final and cannot be appealed.