DUBAI // Three women who tried to escape from a police station cell have been sentenced to a month in prison.
The trio had been arrested on human trafficking charges and detained at Al Rafaa Police Station pending trial when they made a break for freedom.
They tricked their guard by claiming they needed to make urgent phone calls. When the guard opened the phone booth they assaulted her and stole her keys before tying her up and locking her in her office.
Other police officers who heard the guard's screams came to investigate and caught the women as they tried to escape.
Prosecutors told the Misdemeanours Court the escape attempt took place on January 24.
"One of them stuck a piece of cloth inside my mouth to stop me from screaming then another held a screwdriver to my neck and threatened me," recalled the guard.
She said she struggled as hard as she could, kicking with her legs and wriggling until she dislodged the piece of cloth from her mouth. She then screamed as loudly as she could.
In court, the three prisoners - PL, 41, from Uzbekistan and MJ, 33, from Kyrgyzstan, and EA, 39, from Uzbekistan - were charged with assaulting and threatening an officer of the law and attempting to escape detention.
The court found them guilty of all charges except issuing threats.
During an earlier hearing the trial heard the women had targeted the police officer on duty believing she would provide the least resistance.
"During five months that I have been in detention, escape did cross my mind but I have never attempted to do it until the other two detainees convinced me," recalled MJ.
Her role was to shut the door of the guard's office and act as a lookout.
"We had to wait for the right time and also choose the right policewoman - one we thought we could overpower."
She said that when the opportunity arose, they had to take their chance.
"If we wanted to make it out, it could only be that day."
The trio are yet to appear on human trafficking charges, which will be heard by the Criminal Court.
Any jail time they receive in that case will run in addition to their one-month sentence. The trio will then be deported.
salamir@thenational.ae
