Scottish grandfather who asked neighbour to turn down music allowed home after facing ‘trespass’ charges in Dubai

However, Ian Mackellar, 75, who was fined £650, says he felt he was pushed into pleading guilty in hope of being released.

Mr Mackellar, from Aberdeenshire, was visiting the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with his wife, Carol, to help their daughter, who had recently moved there with her young child.

He has also not been given a future travel ban to Dubai and will be allowed to return to visit his daughter and granddaughter.

The charges occurred on New Year’s Eve, when Mr Mackellar asked a neighbour who was holding a party to turn down loud music as his granddaughter could not sleep. His daughter had previously sent messages asking the host to reduce the noise.

As he left, Mr McKellar claims the host ran up to him and threw a drink over the baby, which he warned he would report to the police. However, his daughter decided not to go ahead with the report as she did not want to cause a problem with her new neighbour.

The neighbour subsequently reported Mr McKellar for “trespass”, leaving him facing a potential jail sentence. He was also told he could not leave Dubai while the case was being processed.

Two weeks later, Mr Mackellar was taken to Al Barsha police station where he was told he would meet with prosecutors.

Radha Stirling, chief executive of charity Detained in Dubai, has warned it is common practice in Dubai for someone who believes they are at risk of being reported themselves to pre-emptively file a complaint against their complainer.

“Ian was extremely nervous,” said Ms Stirling. “He had no idea what was happening. He was put in front of a judge without his lawyer and essentially pushed to plead guilty to the charges against him.

"Ian did so and was then held in a locked room on his own, wondering whether he would be taken to prison. He was finally delivered the relieving news that he would be fined AED 3,000 (£650) and the travel ban would be removed.”

Ms Stirling added: “Expedited proceedings would be a welcome change for Dubai’s legal system. However, they are extremely rare and Ian is fortunate that his case was escalated within the government.”

The charity sought the help of Mr Mackellar’s MP, Andrew Bowie, who raised the matter with the UAE’s ambassador and Westminster’s Middle East minister Lord Ahmad.

Ms Stirling said: “For tourists, the process in itself is a significant punishment, resulting in hefty financial penalties through expensive hotels, lawyers and resulting loss of employment. If Dubai can recognise the frivolity of accusations against foreigners and expedite the judicial process, this would go a long way to preventing unfair detentions and travel bans.

"However, Dubai police also need to review the automatic prosecution process. Just because a complaint is made, doesn’t mean it should automatically go to court and foreigners should not be forced to make the risky decision to plead guilty just to get home.”