Berzerk

old artice, but didn't see it mentioned.

note to EVERYONE, NEVER go to Dubai, ever. Especially if you are any color other than brown and not wearing a smock.



http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/ne...icle3395661.ece


Radio 1 DJ Grooverider given four-year jail term for cannabis smuggling



Lawyers for Grooverider had argued that he was unaware of the strict laws in Dubai. The Radio 1 DJ Grooverider has been sentenced to a four-year prison term in Dubai after admitting to carrying cannabis into the country.

Grooverider – whose real name is Raymond Bingham – told judges at previous court appearance: “The drugs were in my possession and I forgot I had them in my trousers.”

He was convicted yesterday and given the minimum sentence for drug possession in the United Arab Emirates, where deeply conservative laws sometimes collide with the liberal values of the millions of tourists who visit each year.

Grooverider’s lawyers had tried to argue in his defence that he was unaware of the laws.

The 40-year-old DJ, who co-hosts the weekly BBC Radio 1 drum-and bass programme Fabio and Grooverider, was arrested at Dubai airport on November 23, with 2.16 grams of cannabis in his pockets just hours before he was due to play a sold-out show at a popular nightclub.

“I just want this to end and to never come back. It was a small amount. Back home I would not even get prosecuted,” he previously stated, in a published interview from jail.

A BBC spokesman said: “He made a serious mistake and is paying a very high price.” Grooverider has been off the air since his arrest last November.

Although not officially suspended by Radio 1 it is understood that the BBC is not paying him a salary, as the DJ is paid for each show he presents. Bingham has provided his own legal representation.

Drugs are strictly banned in the United Arab Emirates, however there have been several high-profile cases of foreigners being jailed for smuggling small amounts into the country.

A British tourist, Keith Brown, spent four years in jail for the possession of 0.002 grams of cannabis. Bert Tatham, a Canadian UN official who advised the Afghan government was also jailed for carrying 0.5 grams of hashish and two poppy seeds into the country.

The rulers of Dubai later issued Mr Tatham a rare pardon, deporting him to Canada. Highlighting a new crackdown on drug smuggling, the UAE recently installed new drug-sensitive detecting equipment in its airports.

Grooverider, who made his name DJing at illegal warehouse parties, is recognised as a pioneer of the abrasive style of dance music known as drum and bass.

He is a recording artist and record label owner in his own right and an in-demand DJ on the international club circuit. His colleague Fabio will continue to present the Radio 1 show in his absence.

The former Radio 1 DJ Kevin Greening died of a heart attack last year, aged 44, after taking large quantities of cocaine, ecstasy and the drug GHB.

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No Typical Raver

dubai is fucking amazing. he deserves a 4 year prison sentence. don't fuck around with illegal shit and you'll never do time.

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tikachu

yeah no sympathy at all

if you know youre going to a country that is that strict on drugs, and youre a pothead and have to smoke weed, then you should be checking everything you take with you 6 times before you leave the house to get on the plane

dumb move, go directly to jail
do not pass go, do not collect $20,000 for playing the show in dubai

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Berzerk

bullshit.


A bunch of fucking bullshit racism going on there. You are a fool NTR. According to people that have been imprisoned there, it is full or Europeans who have done absolutely nothing wrong.

This guys was sent to prison for having .0003 grams of cannabis stuck to his shoe. What if he stepped on it? What drove the police to pull this man aside and litterally search him down to the molecular level. It's harrasment, its racism. They seem to have plenty of money, and don't seem to really want to intice tourism with this kind of shenanigans.

tikachu

theres a bit of a difference between that and
*edit*

i should add that i never have had or will ever have plans to go to dubai ever.

Berzerk

Oh no doubt about it... he admitted he was wrong. No question.


BUT... does he deserve 4 years in a hellacious Dubai prison for it?


I mean honest mistakes happen, like 10 years ago I forgot I had a switchblade in my backpack and tried to get on a plane. They pulled it out and said I had to throw it away... no biggie. Mistakes happen.

I even know a guy who accidently took a handgun to the airport in his camera bag, his wife had stored it (unloaded, & on safe) in the bag, and he didn't realize. After a lot of questioning they realized it was a mistake and they let him go.

tikachu

no, i dont believe that he should be in for 4 years, nor do i believe that any of the people that did NOTHING wrong should be in there at all. tbh if they are that worried about it they should extradite him to the UK and let them deal with it, and he'll get nothing. but since it seems rare that people get pardons, welp..

but srsly, if you know you are going to a place that has laws like that wouldnt you check your shit over like 50 times before leaving? i sure as hell would. the chances of them finding anything on him would be very very slight if he would have just checked his damn pockets. and this is why i have no sympathy because that was just the stupidest thing the dude ever could have done.

No Typical Raver

if drugs are illegal where you are or where you're going you deserve punishment if you get caught.

just like the rape case, its not about what's right and what's wrong. it's about THE LAW.

happy1

again, NTR you seem to be heartless, rape is fucking rape, no woman deserves that kind of shit. but what pisses me off more than those lowlife scum assholes that commit the crimes is when people like you say it was her fault and its the law, that makes you seem to be just as fucking bad as these assholes that get away with such sick shit!!!!!! *finishes rant* this has gotten me really fired up when i am normally calm and happy. UAE sounds like an almost total police state, just like north korea.

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No Typical Raver

i never said she deserved to be raped.

and seriously, you think i'm a fool? i'm not the one serving 4 years in a middle easter prison!

Weaver

I agree, to be honest.

And about the claims of Dubai not wanting tourism, Tourism is one of their largest (perhaps the largest) form of revenue. I would like to visit there some day, as they have some of the most stunning architecture in the world.

And I don't think it's really a case of Dubai being intolerant of culture, but more of tourist being intolerant of theirs. Yes, the shoe thing is insane. But carrying a noticeable amount of weed into a "city" where you should KNOW they are hard as shit on drugs, not to mention a place where the police force is under direct rule of Maktoum himself, you would be fucking careful. This isn't the relaxed western world, where you can just play stuff off cool. They don't give a fuck over there, it doesn't matter who you are or what you've done. Thats what I mean ignorant of their culture. Just cause your hot shit in the UK doesn't mean the Dubai police care.

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No Typical Raver

i want to see the Burj, the world islands, the palm islands, the underwater hotel (6 stars fuckers, beat that) the ski slope indoors in the middle of the desert and THE CARS MY GOD THE CARS

Weaver

^The underwater hotel is probably my top... maybe the world islands.

No Typical Raver

"Dubai, for example, is home to the recently opened, sail-shaped Burj al Arab, the world's tallest hotel. Compared to Hydropolis, the 27-story, 1,059-foot (321-meter) hotel is a bargain, with rates topping out at about $1,700 a day. (And that's with free transport to and from the airport via Rolls Royce or helicopter.)"


i can't even imagine how expensive it'd be. although i'm not sure they've even started building yet

Weaver

I think it's done actually:

No Typical Raver

i meant Hydropolis, the underwater one

Weaver

^oh lol.

according to my friend, the internet, it's now scheduled for a 2009 opening. I would GUESS that means they started building it, something like that can't just pop up overnight.

weava

Those hotels look/sound crazy.

Grooverider is kind of a dumbass.

I feel bad for the guy with the pot on his shoe.

Dubai needs to chill out a little.

/2cents

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Andjo

Kuwait also has an underwater hotel and is a bit more "american friendly"

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fallenangelslove

agreed

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Camrose

Grooverider has been released from prison in Dubai after being pardoned by the country's royal family.
Dotmusic - Friday, September 5 11:05 am



The DJ and former BBC Radio 1 star was freed after serving 10 months of a four-year sentence for drug possession.

He was initially arrested attempting to board a plane in November 2007 and found to be in possession of 2.16 grams of cannabis.

According to reports, Grooverider, real name Raymond Bingham, has already left Dubia and flown back to the UK.

It is currently unclear if he will be given the opportunity to renew his career on British radio.

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the architech

nice one. since I missed this post before, here's my two cents.

I agree he was stupid for leaving the shit in his pocket, but doesn't deserve 4 years, hell he didn't deserve 10 months. Yes, dubai is crazy. He probably should've known better, but why would you take the insane country's police's side over this and not be outraged at them being fucking crazy in the first place? I read an article about a guy who went to prison there because he had poppy seeds on his pants from a muffin he ate!

The firm I work at designs some of those crazy buildings going up over there and the only way I'd ever ever consider going to dubai is on the company ticket (and insurance). There's just too many crazy police, shit costs way too much (those of you who want to see that hotel, it's about $200 just to walk in. Don't even think about getting food), nothing is finished, not even the roads connected the buildings. Only way I could afford to do anything there is to eat and live in the slums with all the impoverished immigrant workers being forced to build these monstrosities. That Burj Dubai you guys like? There have been several riots, people killed, and buildings destroyed by workers because of the horrible living conditions and pennies they're paid.

I am surprised to see you guys side with these crazy fuckers.

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kylefabulous

lol... i work for lebanese people...

i really want to visit dubai w/ one of my coworkers...
his parents have a house on the mediteranean sea... LUFF...
i think it would be amazing...

or beirut would be fun too...

i am dark enough, i could totally pass for lebanese, if only i spoke arabic
i should note that speaking arabic really isn't essential in going to lebanon, as part of their educational system they must all learn english and french as well as lebanese...

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No Typical Raver

be careful kyle, they REALLY don't like the gays