Elizabeth Polanco de los Santos, a 21-year-old New York college student, found herself detained in Dubai for more than two months after a seemingly innocuous incident involving an airport security officer. Her ordeal began in July when she stopped in Dubai for a connecting flight during her trip back to New York from Istanbul.
Polanco, a business arts major at Lehman College in the Bronx, had recently undergone surgery and was wearing a waist compression device. When airport customs officers instructed her to remove it, she gently tapped one of the officers on the arm to ask for assistance in putting it back on.
However, this minor interaction escalated dramatically. Customs officers alleged that Polanco’s touch constituted “assaulting and insulting” behavior, leading to her hours-long detention and the filing of a formal complaint. She was allowed to leave the immediate area after signing paperwork in Arabic but was later informed that she had a travel ban against her and couldn’t leave the country.
In a shocking turn of events, judges ordered Polanco to pay a fine of 10,000 UAE dirhams (approximately $2,772). Although she could afford the fine, airport customs officials appealed the sentence, leading to concerns that they were attempting to pressure her into an out-of-court settlement.
Detained in Dubai, an advocacy group providing legal assistance to foreigners in the UAE, revealed that Polanco had been informed she could face up to a year in prison and had already incurred $50,000 in legal expenses. Even if she won her case, the group explained that the UAE’s complex appellate court process meant she might be held for another six months at her own expense.
However, on Tuesday, Polanco received a glimmer of hope when Dubai police informed her that she would be sent back to the US. She had her fingerprints taken and was told her passport would be returned to her at the airport.
Polanco’s mother eagerly awaited her return to New York, relieved by the news. Detained in Dubai expressed gratitude to the American embassy and New York US congressman Ritchie Torres for their support, though the details of that support remained undisclosed.
While Polanco’s ordeal appears to be nearing its end, Detained in Dubai called upon the US State Department to update its travel warnings to include the risk of false allegations and extortion scams, highlighting the dangers faced by travelers in certain situations abroad.
In a statement, Polanco expressed her profound relief but also her feelings of violation and embarrassment over the incident in Dubai, compounded by the recent loss of her father.
This case serves as a stark reminder of the potential legal pitfalls faced by travelers in foreign countries and the importance of diplomatic intervention in resolving such disputes.
