Dubai court commutes penalty of drunk driver

The Dubai Court of Appeal overturned a verdict issued by the Court of First Instance by fining an Asian driver Dhs3,000 instead of a one-month jail term.

The defendant was convicted of driving without a driving licence and under the influence of alcohol after being caught red-handed on a main street.

The case dated back to October last year when a police patrol stopped a vehicle driven by the defendant on Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai after suspecting him of reckless driving.

A policeman stated that he asked the defendant to present his driving licence, only to be told he was driving without the owner’s knowledge and without a licence.

The policeman went on to say that he had searched the vehicle as a precaution and found no prohibited substances inside.

As he was slurring his speech, the defendant was subjected to a breathalyser test, which confirmed that he was drunk, and was subsequently arrested.

According to the case file, the defendant admitted that he had consumed alcoholic beverages before driving his friend’s vehicle without the latter’s knowledge and that he was arrested while committing the violation on Sheikh Zayed Road while heading to a mall in the Marina area.