Ohio veteran and influencer, Joseph Lopez and his brother Joshua have been sentenced to jail time in Dubai for drinking alcohol onboard the yacht.
An Ohio veteran and his brother have been sentenced to jail after a night out in Dubai went terribly wrong. Mr USA contestant (currently Mr Louisiana title holder) and his brother are facing time in some of the world’s most notorious prisons after being drugged during their touristic visit to the Emirates.
Last week, Joseph and Joshua Lopez appeared in court to face a charge of drinking alcohol. They were sentenced to one month in prison but still face a charge related to “damaging government property and assaulting an officer” which lawyers expect will be a lengthy sentence.
The Lopez brothers will fight the second charge in court on the 20th of August. “They were drugged by locals after being asked to a yacht party by a local resident”, explained Detained in Dubai CEO, Radha Stirling. “It is clear they were targeted by scammers who were wanting to rob them. They were given one drink onboard the yacht and the next thing they remember is being taken away by plain clothed police officers in an unmarked vehicle. They were under the impression they were being abducted. The police did not test their blood for presence of any drugs or sedatives despite the boys’ request for them to do so.
“The government portrays that Dubai is a safe and crime free destination for tourists but the fact is, we see tourists targeted all the time. Whether it’s financial predators looking to scam visitors like Joseph and Joshua or attacks on women like Selina Waterman Smith, who was abducted and gang raped. The government doesn’t seem to acknowledge crimes in the statistics they provide to the media or tourists. It’s a myth that Dubai is crime free. They just don’t acknowledge it as it’s bad for business”.
Detained in Dubai is pushing for US diplomatic intervention and Joseph and Joshua hope for diplomatic intervention from their local representatives in Ohio. Rep. Carey, Senator Brown and Senator Vance. “Without diplomatic intervention, these boys face potentially years in jails notorious for human rights abuse and torture”, says Ms Stirling, who has been helping in similar situations for over 16 years. “Joseph Lopez is an air force veteran who helps people in difficult situations through his mental health advocacy. He and his brother deserve every effort from the US government to bring him home”.
