Expatriate Healthcare News: Dubai expat 'faces prosecution for making offensive gesture'
09/04/10 17:30
An expatriate living in Dubai is facing prosecution for allegedly making an offensive gesture towards another motorist.
Simon Andrews said the allegation that he stuck his middle finger up at another expat was "absurd".
Iraqi expat Mahmud Rasheed claims Mr Andrews, originally from Loughborough in the UK, had made the gesture when he tried to overtake the British expatriate.
Mr Andrews, who could face a six-month jail sentence if he is found guilty of making the gesture, told the Daily Telegraph that he does not know what he is supposed to have done.
"What is true is that this teenager was driving behind me in his 4x4 and started flashing and beeping," he said.
"He was very impatient. He then cut me up. I got cross but at no point did I stick my finger up at him."
In the emirate, making insulting gestures can carry a jail sentence and deportation.
The case is the latest in a line of court appearances by expatriates who have been accused of misbehaving in public.
Last week, expat Ayman Najafi and tourist Charlotte Lewis lost their appeal against a one-month jail sentence for kissing in public.
The pair were also convicted of drinking alcohol after pleading guilty to the charge in the Dubai court.
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