Navy veteran faces years in Dubai prison after being accused of ‘trafficking’ his own prescription medication
An American is stranded in ‘purgatory’ in Dubai accused of drug trafficking six pills of his own prescription medication.
Charles Wimberly, 52, takes high-strength ibuprofen and CBD tablets for a back injury and PTSD he suffered falling out of a helicopter during his 21-year US Navy career.
He went on holiday in the United Arab Emirates with friends before having the next of several back surgeries in November.
But he was stopped at security after emptying his pockets of the six 10mg pills at airport security on his way home to Covington, Georgia on September 27.
Charles Wimberly, 52, takes high-strength ibuprofen and CBD tablets for a back injury and PTSD he suffered falling out of a helicopter during his 21-year US Navy career
Wimberly wrongly believed that the CBD medication was allowed because it was prescribed, based on information he read online.
Airport security did not agree, telling him it was illegal, and police arrested him on charges of drug trafficking – which carries a huge jail sentence.
‘Charles had unfortunately been provided with some misinformation on the internet in respect of prescription medicine,’ Detained in Dubai chief executive Radha Stirling said.
‘He thought he was abiding by the law but is now facing a possible 3+ year sentence for ‘trafficking’ his own prescription meds.’
Police threw Wimberly in jail, and told his friend to leave and get on their flight, or they too would be arrested.
Without his diabetes medications that were also confiscated, his blood sugar levels crashed to 40 mg/dl and his collapsed into a diabetic coma.
‘Charles was locked up and deprived of his prescription medication as well as meds to manage his diabetes and sleep apnea causing him to suffer a diabetic episode,’ Stirling said.
‘He’s a good man who does not partake in drugs (as evidenced in his medical history). All he wanted was one last holiday before his debilitating surgery.’
Wimberly awoke to a doctor shining a light in his eyes and asking if he was diabetic.
‘My PTSD is at a very high level right now… I’m so tired of crying… I can’t stop shaking. My daughter is so upset… I feel like I’ve let everyone down,’ he Wimberly (pictured with his daughter) said
Unable to walk, police carried him to a different cell in the jail where about 240 inmates were crammed in, sleeping on mattresses on the floor.
After hours languishing there, he took a drug test to confirm his story that the drugs were for his own medicinal use, and he wasn’t a drug dealer.
Wimberly said the results led prosecutors to knock the charges down to misdemeanor drug possession charges, but he still couldn’t go home.
He was released without bond but his passport flagged so he couldn’t leave the UAE until his unspecific court date – likely months or even years away.
He retrieved his luggage, which was hauled off the plane, and took a taxi to a hotel where he has been living at $80 a day ever since.
Wimberly survives on turkey sandwiches from a local supermarket, and does his best to treat his chronic back pain with over-the-counter medications.
‘My PTSD is at a very high level right now… I’m so tired of crying… I can’t stop shaking. My daughter is so upset… I feel like I’ve let everyone down,’ he said.
Stirling said the longer Wimberly was stuck in the UAE, the more damage it would do to his health as he would almost certainly miss his surgery.
‘If he is not released imminently, he will miss his surgery in Georgia and the UAE will not provide him with any medical treatment,’ he said.
‘If he stays in Dubai, things will become very bad very quickly for Charles. His family, especially his daughter, are extremely concerned for his health and welfare.’
Wimberly will wait for a court date with no end in sight, as even defendants who are found not guilty often spend six months stranded in the country
Wimberly misread UAE laws that allowed prescription medication into the country, but only if they are registered in advance.
‘All travellers carrying controlled medication into the UAE must apply for approval through the Ministry of Health website. This should be completed before making the trip,’ the rules state.
‘Controlled medication’ includes ‘those that, if not used responsibly, can lead to addiction and have the potential to be abused by individuals’.
CBD does not produce any psychotropic effects, unlike marijuana, but is still included in that definition.
Wimberly will wait for a court date with no end in sight, as even defendants who are found not guilty often spend six months stranded in the country.
