Dubai – Police in the United Arab Emirates have dropped a criminal case against an Irish flight attendant living in Dubai for attempted suicide.
Read also:
Police Revealed To Have Interrogated 9 Witnesses In Thiko Aryavardhana Case, Who Are They?
Tori Towey was previously charged with attempted suicide by overdose in June. Police also confiscated her passport.
Image of whisky/scotch liqueur.
Read also:
Thiko Aryavardhana was questioned as a witness, police say in alleged embezzlement case
The allegations came after Tovey filed a domestic violence report against her husband.
“The Dubai Public Prosecution has closed the case against Irish national Tory Tovey after she and her husband, a South African national, were accused of assaulting each other since May 2024,” Nawi Arab, Friday, July 12, 2024.
Read also:
Police ask Thiko Aryavardhana 41 questions over alleged embezzlement case
“The couple reconciled and dropped the charges against each other. The Dubai Attorney General also dropped the attempted suicide charge against (Tovey) and allowed him to return to a normal life, taking into account the circumstances of the case.”
Tovey’s case was first raised by Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou MacDonald on Tuesday 9 July 2024, who claimed she was subject to a travel ban.
On Wednesday, July 10, 2024, Irish Taoist priest Sam Harris confirmed that the travel ban had been lifted and that Tovey was feeling better after a phone call, the BBC reported.
Following the news, Radha Stirling, director of the Dubai-based advocacy group for the detainees, said Tovey and his mother were delighted the charges had been dropped.
The details of Tovey’s alleged suicide attempt are unclear, but suicide attempts are historically banned in the UAE. Although survivors are rarely prosecuted, legal loopholes leave victims vulnerable to criminal prosecution.
According to The National, legal reforms in 2020 made suicide and attempted suicide illegal.
However, Article 335 of the UAE Ministry of Justice states that “anyone who commits suicide shall be punished with imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or a fine not exceeding AED 5,000 (US$1,361), or both.”
This raises the question of whether the law still applies.
As part of the reforms, the penalty for consumption, sale or possession of alcohol for those over 21 years of age was also abolished.
Harris said the Irish embassy is continuing to monitor Tovey’s case because it is still active.
The Irish Prime Minister also condemned Tovey’s treatment in Dubai, calling it completely unacceptable.
“The flight attendant woke up in a police station, not a hospital,” the Irish prime minister said.
Tovey and his mother are expected to arrive in Ireland on Thursday evening, his aunt told BBC Radio 4’s North West Foyle programme on Wednesday.
Next page
On Wednesday, July 10, 2024, Irish Taoist priest Sam Harris confirmed that the travel ban had been lifted and that Tovey was feeling better after a phone call, the BBC reported.
