A tourist who punched a Dubai airport officer in the face had his deportation sentence upheld on Sunday.
On December 31, the 22-year-old Saudi Arabian man arrived at Dubai International Airport with plans to celebrate the New Year in the emirate.
According to court records, the man was heavily intoxicated and was causing a ruckus when a policeman approached him and told him to accompany him to the detention office.
It was then that the defendant assaulted the 24-year-old Yemeni policeman.
"As I tried to talk him into entering the detention room, he suddenly threw a punch to my face. I grabbed him but he fiercely resisted so I had to call for help and airport security personnel joined to restrain him," said the officer.
After they arrested the man, the policeman was admitted to Rashid Hospital for bruising on his face. At Dubai Criminal Court in January, the defendant admitted a physical assault charge.
"I don't know what I was doing, I wasn't in the mental state to understand what I was doing," he told judges. He was sentenced to a suspended three prison term and fined Dh2,000.
He won't have to serve time in prison but will be deported immediately.
Should he return to the UAE and commit the same offence within three years, he will have to serve three months in prison in addition to the penalty of the new offence.
Prosecutors appealed the sentence, seeking harsher punishment but the sentence was upheld in Dubai Court of Appeal.
