An American musician has been deported from the UAE on Friday after he was found in possession of painkillers without the proper medical prescription.
Matthew Gonzales was arrested in April on charges of illegal possession of Tramadol, listed as a banned drug in the UAE.
The musician and IT worker from Miami was passing through Abu Dhabi to board a Royal Caribbean cruise ship.
Gonzales was initially sentenced to two years in prison but this was reduced to deportation and a Dh7,000 fine after the defense presented documents proving that he was prescribed Tramadol by his doctor for a shoulder injury.
Lawyers have advised tourists to be more cautious in bringing medication into the country.
It is not just that they must have an authenticated prescription from an official and certified authority in their home country, but it also has to be very accurate.The exact dosage has to be mentioned and signed by a certified doctor,” lawyer Huda Al Falamarzy said as quoted by The National.
Gonzales had been in Al Whatba prison for more than two months before he was able to return to the US last June 24.
Credit: The National
Photo Credit: TheDigitalWay
