A 23-year-old British law student, Mia O’Brien from Liverpool, has been sentenced to life in prison in Dubai after what her family calls a “terrible mistake.” She is currently being held in the city’s Central Prison, with her mother saying the family has been left devastated.

Mia’s mother, Danielle McKenna, 46, said she has not seen her daughter since October last year. “She’s just a young girl who made a very foolish mistake, and now she is facing the consequences,” she told Mail Online.

McKenna had earlier launched an online fundraiser to help her daughter, but it was removed. A spokesperson for GoFundMe confirmed that the campaign was taken down as its rules prohibit fundraising for the legal defence of certain criminal charges.

In the United Arab Emirates, a life sentence usually means 15 to 25 years behind bars. Such punishments are typically linked to serious crimes, including drug offences, murder, human trafficking, and terrorism.

While Mia’s family has not revealed the exact charge, British media reported that she was arrested in October after being found with 50 grams of a Class A drug, said to be worth around £2,500 (₹3 lakh).

Life inside Dubai’s central prison

Mia is being held in Dubai’s Central Prison, a facility often criticised for its harsh conditions. Former inmates have spoken about overcrowding, violence, lack of privacy, and confessions forced through torture. Cells built for three or four people are said to house up to 20, with some prisoners forced to share beds.

Her mother described the conditions her daughter is facing: “She’s heartbroken by everything that’s happened. Mia is showing courage, but I know she’s enduring a nightmare. The conditions are appalling. There’s hardly any staff around, and if she needs help, she has to pound on a heavy door just to get attention. She’s witnessed fights and admitted to feeling terrified. At night, she sleeps on a thin mattress on the floor, squeezed into a cell with six others. She hasn’t fallen seriously ill, but she has developed skin rashes.”