Risky sex on beach could lead to jail term

July 11, 2008

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A BRITISH businesswoman is facing up to six years’ jail for a drunken sexual encounter on a public beach in Dubai.

Michelle Palmer, 30, was arrested after being caught with a UK holidaymaker following an all-day binge.

Yesterday she was sacked from her job as a publishing manager and begged for clemency at her forthcoming trial for breaching a strict ban on sex outside marriage in the Muslim emirate.

“We have all made silly regretful mistakes in life, of which some pay all too dearly,” she said.

“I am good, I am kind and I am true. The fear I feel each time I close my eyes fills my heart with dread.”

Writing in an online blog in response to a debate about the couple’s antics, she said: “There are a lot of wrong rumours circulating around, which at this crucial time are very damaging to me, those close to me and my case.

“Please be sympathetic for the sake of those I love, if this were you, your sister/brother, your daughter/son, how would you really be feeling?”

It was last Friday when a police officer caught Ms Palmer and her partner, known only as Vince, having sex on a beach popular with expats and holidaymakers.

They had met hours earlier at a champagne brunch at Le Meridien Hotel, where Ms Palmer got extremely drunk before setting off for a walk along the shore with her new-found companion.

A police officer later spotted the pair having sex on the sand and let them off with a caution.

But the pair ignored the warning and they were arrested when the officer returned to the scene.

According to police sources, Ms Palmer launched an angry tirade at the officer upon being disturbed for a second time. She is alleged to have hurled abuse and tried to hit him with her high-heeled shoe before being restrained and taken to a cell.

There she was charged with having sex outside marriage, indecent behaviour in public, being drunk in public and assaulting a police officer.

She faces a sentence of between three months and six years in jail in the state which is known for its strict stance on sex and drugs.

Authorities under growing pressure to curb the excesses of westerners plan to deport Miss Palmer at the end of her sentence.