British mother, 55, faces jail in Dubai after branding her ex-husband an ‘idiot’ and his new wife a ‘horse’ on Facebook
A British mum faces being jailed in Dubai over a disparaging Facebook post she made two years ago about her ex-husband’s new wife.
Laleh Sharavesh was arrested along with her 14-year-old daughter Paris when she arrived in the Arab kingdom for her ex’s funeral last month.
She discovered her ex-husband’s second wife had complained about the social media post from 2016 and Laleh was held under Dubai’s strict cyber crime laws.
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Laleh Sharavesh was arrested along with her 14-year-old daughter Paris when she arrived in the Arab kingdom for her ex’s funeral last month
While her 14-year-old daughter was allowed to return home to Britain, Laleh, 55, has been banned from leaving the country as her passport has been confiscated.ADVERTISING
Lawyers have told the single mum she faces up to two years in jail and a fine of £50,000 when she appears in court later this week.
Laleh told Mail Online: ‘I am terrified. I can’t sleep or eat. I have gone down two dress sizes because of the stress.
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Laleh said she wrote two comments in Farsi where she described 42-year-old Tunisian born Samah al Hammadi as a ‘horse’ and called her ex an ‘idiot’
‘And my daughter cries herself to sleep every night. We are so close, especially since her father left us and we only have each other. It breaks my heart to be kept apart from her’.
Her ordeal began on March 14 when Laleh and her daughter flew to Dubai’s for her ex husband Pedro’s funeral.
He died aged 51 from a heart attack on March 3 and Laleh and her daughter, from Richmond upon Thames, Surrey, wanted to pay their final respects.
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Her ordeal began on March 14 when Laleh and her daughter flew to Dubai’s for her ex husband Pedro’s funeral
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Her husband and his new wife Samah Al Hammadi (pictured) were living in Dubai when the Facebook posts were made in October 2016
Two years earlier after the Portugese banker had left her after 18 years of marriage for a younger woman she lashed out in anger on his Facebook page when she saw a photo of his new wife on their wedding day.
Laleh said she wrote two comments in Farsi where she described 42-year-old Tunisian born Samah al Hammadi as a ‘horse’ and called her ex an ‘idiot’.
As she made the Facebook post while living in the UK she thought nothing more about the comments.
She was unaware al Hammadi had complained to Dubai authorities where social media posts can be used in a prosecution.
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As soon as Laleh and her daughter landed in Dubai on March 10, intending to stay for five days, they were arrested at the airport
Laleh said: ‘I had no idea he was getting married again, and so soon after our own marriage broke down.
‘I reacted badly. I lashed out and wrote two unpleasant comments about his new wife on his Facebook page.
‘I know shouldn’t have. I should have behaved better, but I felt angry, betrayed and hurt. After 18 years of marriage, such a small amount of time apart, he was getting married so quickly. He didn’t even have enough respect for me to tell me in advance’.
As soon as Laleh and her daughter landed in Dubai on March 10, intending to stay for five days, they were arrested at the airport.
Immigration authorities had an outstanding arrest warrant following the complaint made in 2017 about the Facebook post.
The two offending posts were: ‘I hope you go under the ground you idiot. Damn you. You left me for this horse’ and ‘You married a horse you idiot’.
The terrified pair spent 12 hours in a police station and were not offered any food and hardly any water.
Laleh said she was offered a statement to sign in Arabic and the translation of the Facebook post bore no relation to what she had written.
The word ‘bitch’ had been substituted for the word ‘horse.’
Laleh was told she could not leave Dubai while she awaited a court hearing.
Her daughter was allowed to fly home and is desperately missing her mother while she stays with friends.
Laleh lived in Dubai for eight months with her husband after he landed a job with the HSBC bank.
She returned home with their daughter expecting her husband to return after he completed his work commitments.
But she later discovered he had begun a relationship with another woman and filed for divorce after 18 years.
Laleh said she had no idea her husband planned to marry so soon after their split.
Her husband and his new wife Samah Al Hammadi were living in Dubai when the Facebook posts were made in October 2016.
Laleh said she has lost her job at a homeless shelter due to her absence and now faces losing her home as she has racked £5,000 in debt while being forced to stay in Dubai.
She said: ‘I have lost everything because of this.