Let me come home, teen sentenced in Dubai pleads

An 18-year-old British man sentenced to a year in prison for a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old British girl in Dubai has appealed to the emirate's ruler "to let me go home".

Marcus Fakana, from north London, began a secretive holiday romance in September with another Londoner, who is now aged 18.

After returning home and seeing pictures and chats, the girl's mother reported the relationship to Dubai police, who arrested Fakana at his hotel. Sex with another person aged under 18 is illegal in Dubai.

Speaking in temporary accommodation while on bail, he told campaign group Detained in Dubai: "I am asking His Highness, Sheikh Mohammed Al Maktoum to please forgive me and pardon me."

The teenager added: "Let me go home. Please give me my life back.

"I never intended to break the law. It didn't occur to me at the time and for that, I'm sorry."

On Wednesday, Detained in Dubai called the judgment an "utter disgrace" and said Fakana, from Tottenham, would appeal against the "unreasonable" sentence.

Both teenagers were on holiday with their parents in the UAE from the UK, where the age of consent is 16.

Fakana had told his family about the romance but the girl had not told hers.

The government of Dubai previously said: "Under UAE law, the girl is legally classified as a minor, and in accordance with procedures recognised internationally, her mother - being the legal guardian - filed the complaint."

It added: "Dubai's legal system is committed to protecting the rights of all individuals and ensuring impartial judicial proceedings."

The BBC has approached it for further comment.

Ms Stirling, the founder and chief executive of Detained in Dubai, which helps foreigners abroad and is an international authority on UAE law, told the BBC that Fakana "was shocked" by the "unfathomable" sentence.

She said: "It does not warrant a year in jail, doesn't warrant tearing this family apart and ruining this young 18-year-old's life.

"I'm confident that, on appeal, the custodial sentence will be overturned and he will be allowed to return home.

"The question is how long is that going to take and how much effort is that going to take, whether that's British intervention or the public support in telling Dubai this is unacceptable?"

The 18-year-old's parents returned to London without their son after the holiday to resume their jobs in a warehouse and as a cleaner to help pay for his temporary accommodation.

A UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson said: "We are supporting a British man in the UAE and are in contact with his family."