A man who smuggled more than 1kg of amphetamines into the country will see out his seven year jail sentence.
The Pakistani defendant, 24, was convicted with smuggling drugs by Dubai Criminal Court this year and was sentenced to seven years in prison followed by deportation.
When he appeared in court he said the drugs were for his personal use.
"Are you going to use more than one kilo by yourself?" presiding judge Mohammed Jamal asked the defendant who responded: "Yes your honour, I only get to go home once every two years so I bought enough drugs to see me through."
The man was arrested at Dubai International Airport on February 7 carrying 1.3kg of amphetamines as he returned from his home country.
During police and prosecution investigations, he said he was given bags to carry by a friend in Pakistan who asked him to deliver them to a man in Dubai but denied knowing they contained drugs.
The court downgraded his charge from possession of drugs with intent to sell to just possession.
Prosecutors appealed the ruling, asking that the charge be returned to ‘possessing drugs to sell’.
Dubai Criminal Court refused the prosecutors’ request and upheld the man’s prison sentence along with a fine of Dh50,000.