An American man has been sentenced to three years in prison after drunkenly attacking a policeman and breaking his leg.
The 30-year-old, who was convicted in his absence and is no longer in the UAE, assaulted the officer in December 2014 — though it is unclear why the case took five years to be heard in court.
Dubai Criminal Court heard how the accused, who played football for a local Dubai team, had attacked his victim from behind near Bur Dubai police station.
As the officer fell over, the man continued hitting him. A second officer tried to restrain the attacker but could not fend him off.
“I didn’t see him. He came from behind and hit me on the leg with a solid object,” the officer, 48, told the court.
“It was the evening shift when this happened. I couldn’t stop him,” said the second Emirati policeman, 36.
During police questioning, the American admitted to drinking heavily and said he could not recall the incident.
He was convicted of assault and insulting a police officer as well as drinking alcohol without a license.
