Student thought hashish was legal in UAE, court told

A student who was found with hashish inside his mobile phone tells court he was not aware the drug was illegal.

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DUBAI // A student found with hashish in his underwear told a court yesterday he was unaware the drug was illegal.

BS, a 20-year-old from Belgium, was identified as a dealer by two other students - BZ, 19, also from Belgium, and AM, 19, from Australia - when they were arrested for drug possession at Mulla Plaza Mall on July 5.

Police raided his flat in Al Muraqabbat later that day and found him in possession of 21 grams of the drug. He had stashed the drug inside a mobile phone and hidden the phone in his underwear.

He told police he bought the drug in Lebanon and brought it into the UAE via Dubai International Airport.

At the Criminal Court he admitted a charge of importing drugs. "However, I did not know that it was prohibited here," he said.

The other two students were charged with abusing drugs. Both confessed, but the Australian claimed he had taken the drug while in Oman.

The next hearing was scheduled for November 25.