ABU DHABI // A court heard a plea for leniency yesterday because a drugs suspect has five sisters.
The lawyer, Nashwa Al Kubaissy, told the appeals court that her client, AH, who is an Emirati, "suffers psychological problems and is almost autistic".
"He is very shy because he was born between five girls," she said. "We previously asked for him to be sent for treatment."
AH, as well as MA, who is Sudanese, and MN, a Yemeni, are accused of consuming the prescription-only painkiller tramadol.
The lawyer said that AH had a prescription but that it was out of date at the time of the alleged offence. "You know young men in that age, they just use what they have," she said.
The judge said that when AH was arrested, in front of a car wash in Musaffah, "he was taking a tramadol tablet out of his trouser pocket, and threw it under his car when he saw the police". The judge added: "He also threw a bottle of 23 pills under another car." AH denied that.
Ms Al Kubaissy pointed out that public prosecutors had lost the case files, and that when the defendants were called back six months later to sign new statements, the charges had changed.
Since her client is young, she said, it would be better "to save what could be saved".
At their initial trial, the men were convicted and jailed.
A verdict in their appeal is to be announced on May 30.
