James Hutchinson has been told he won’t be a free man until he pays thousands of pounds in compensation to the family of a cyclist he killed in a road accident back in 2013
An Army veteran being held in a notorious prison in Abu Dhabi has been abandoned by the UK Government, his dad claims.
James Hutchinson was arrested in the United Arab Emirates in July and has been detained at Al Wathba jail â known as Dante’s Inferno. The Brit, 52, has been told he will not be released unless he pays £170,000 in “blood money” compensation to the family of a cyclist he killed in a road accident in 2013.
Insurers had already paid around £15,000 in compensation to the family of the Sudanese man in 2014 after a judge ruled James was partly responsible for the crash. James’ dad Malcolm, 74, an RAF veteran, said: “I’m begging the British Government to sort this out. worried “The embassy over there doesn’t seem to be interested in his plight.”
Malcolm, of Rotherham, South Yorks, who flew to the UAE last week, said: “James looked dishevelled and was in low spirits when I saw him in jail. I’m very worried.” Ex-inmates have talked of sharing cells with up to 40 others, and said “hellhole” conditions include 50C heat and “rotten garbage” food.