23-year-old British woman was sentenced to life imprisonment in Dubai (4 photos)

Mia O'Brien, from Liverpool, 'made a stupid mistake' and is now in Dubai Central Prison. Her family are desperately appealing for any help they can get.





The prisoner's mother, Danielle McKenna, is 'absolutely devastated'.

In a now-deleted GoFundMe post, Danielle wrote: 'We haven't seen each other since October last year. Mia is only 23 and has never done anything wrong. She went to law school but unfortunately fell in with the wrong crowd. My daughter made a very stupid mistake and now she is paying for it."



The family has set up a fundraiser to cover legal costs and the cost of visiting her.

"I want to thank everyone for their help. The money will go towards my daughter Mia's legal costs. Maybe we will be able to come to Dubai and see her. We haven't seen Mia since October last year. Thank you so much!" the mother addressed the concerned people.

However, the page was soon removed for unknown reasons.

In an interview with the Daily Mail, Danielle shared: "She was recently transferred to another prison after the verdict was announced. It was a real shock."





In the UAE, life imprisonment for foreigners means 25 years in prison, after which they are deported. Although the family has not disclosed details of the crime, there are a number of offences that carry the maximum sentence.

Some of these include drug trafficking and possession, human trafficking, murder or attempted murder, and terrorist activity.

The UK Foreign Office has reminded citizens that the UAE authorities "treat the presence of drugs in the blood as possession."

"The penalties for drug trafficking, smuggling, use and possession (including blood levels) are very severe. Drug trafficking can result in the death penalty."



Mia with her mother