Freed Dubai teen Marcus Fakana's jail hell as he was 'forced to watch rapes'
British teen Marcus Fakana has at last been freed from a Dubai prison following 12 months of "hell".
Nineteen-year-old Marcus, from Tottenham, north London, had been staying with family in the United Arab Emirates city when he struck up a holiday romance with another teenager, who was also from London, at the Hilton Dubai Palm Jumeirah, reports the Mirror.
The pair had consensual sex, but as the girl was still a few weeks off her 18th birthday, the then 18-year-old Marcus faced severe consequences under the harsh legal system of the UAE, where sex between under-18s is illegal.
Local police officers were tipped off by the girl's mother, and Marcus was put behind the bars of the notorious al-Awir prison, where he spent his birthday and New Year's far from home, in squalid and dangerous conditions.
Holiday romance gone wrong
Marcus and the girl had intended to continue their relationship once they returned to the UK. However, everything changed on August 31, 2024, when, while still on holiday, Marcus was taken into police custody.
Speaking previously about the summer fling, Marcus told the Mirror: "We had a wonderful time. I couldn't wait to see her again. Then police knocked on our hotel door."
For three long days, Marcus was held at the "notorious" Al Barsha Police Station, where, according to the campaign group Detained in Dubai, he was unable to make a phone call or even speak with his worried parents.
A judge ordered that the construction apprentice be locked up for one year in the infamous al-Awir prison.
In December 2024, Marcus stated that he had been "shocked beyond belief" by the sentence and begged "Let me go home. Please give me my life back."
Cruel conditions and harrowing rapes
According to a report earlier this year, rape is an "every day occurrence" at Al-Awir Central Prison, with both inmates and guards subjected to frequent violent assaults.
Male prisoners must have shaved heads at all times, while female inmates, who are kept in separate buildings, reportedly have to wear head coverings. They are packed into overcrowded cells, with as many as 20 inmates battling for three beds.
In an interview with The Independent in 2017, ex-managing director of Leeds United, David Haigh, who was held for nearly two years on trumped-up fraud charges, described the conditions he faced while locked up in Dubai.
According to David: 'The only way to describe being in prison in Dubai is hell. I was held for 22 months and I'll never forget it – the stench, the dirt, the smell, the heat, and the lack of any information whatsoever."
Remembering how he was punched, Tasered, beaten and raped during his time in a cell, David reflected: 'The worst of this abuse was perpetrated by the prison guards and police. I lost a lot of weight through stress.
'Once, when I asked for some painkillers, a guard hit me over the head with a broom handle. When someone's beating you or hurting you in whatever form, in a weird way, you can deal with that. What I found more harrowing was seeing them do it to other prisoners in front of everyone.'
Speaking with the Ilford Recorder, Marcus' sister Davena Kumar revealed that her brother had been separated from friends and forced to watch other prisoners being raped.
Davena told the publication: 'He's sharing a cell with someone who's been sentenced for life. They've made him watch other men being raped like it's a lesson."
Opening up about Marcus' condition one month into his sentence, Davena shared: "He was skinny and he wasn't himself. He was banging on the door, calling my name, and I just wanted to hug him.'
Return home and lasting trauma
Remarking upon Marcus' return home, Detained in Dubai CEO Radha described the teenager as an "extraordinary young man caught in a deeply unjust system".
Radha said: "Marcus should never have been put through this. He was supposed to spend a short few days with his family, but ended up spending nearly a year in the tourist destination. We are thrilled that after an intensive campaign, he was officially pardoned and is home safe, surrounded by those who love him.
"This was an extraordinary young man caught in a deeply unjust system. We thank everyone who stood by Marcus and helped bring him home."
While celebrating that Marcus is now "back where he belongs", Radha went on to emphasise the " trauma" he's been left with, due to the "severe" impact of the decision.
She added: 'Marcus is back where he belongs. But no one should have to endure this. He was 18 at the time, and the British woman involved is now 18 too, a fact she did not divulge to him at the time. We hope his story will prompt serious reconsideration of the UK's travel advice and its engagement with the UAE on human rights issues.
"Dubai could have chosen to fine and to deport him. Instead, the 18-year-old was sentenced to one year in prison. The impact on his life has been severe and there was no need for him to endure such trauma."
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