A Canuck lucks out

From our embedded reporter, this link:

Canadian jailed in drug case in Dubai is pardoned by ruler of the emirate
By Abdul Latheef, The Canadian Press
A Canadian sentenced in Dubai earlier this year to four years in prison on drug charges has been pardoned by the ruler of the emirate, raising hopes that he could be back in Canada to spend the holiday season with family and friends.
Bert Tatham, 35, of Vancouver, was among hundreds of prisoners pardoned by Sheik Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum as part of an Eid amnesty, a court source in the United Arab Emirates told The Canadian Press on Monday.
Tatham's family confirmed that they have been told he has been pardoned.
Tatham is a former United Nations worker who was returning to Canada from Afghanistan when he was arrested. He was employed in Afghanistan by an American company hired by the U.S. State Department.
The official news agency WAM reported earlier Monday that Sheik Mohammad, who is also the prime minister of the U.A.E, had pardoned 377 inmates of Dubai prisons.
Tatham was arrested April 23 at Dubai International Airport during a stopover after being caught with 0.6 grams of hashish and two poppy bulbs. He was sentenced to four years in jail June 19.
At the time, the judge said Tatham must serve his full sentence.
It is common for rulers of the Gulf countries to declare amnesties during Islamic festivals and Eid al-Adha is celebrated this week.
Eid is a major occasion when families spend time together and the official announcement stressed this by saying the pardon will enable the inmates "spend the Eid holidays with their families."
It was not immediately clear when Tatham would be released from jail. But WAM quoted Dubai's attorney general Essam Al Hemeidan as saying that "the Prosecutors' Chamber will take the necessary steps in co-ordination with the Dubai police to release the inmates."
Meanwhile, Tatham's family friends in Canada welcomed the news.
A note published in a website devoted to freeing Tatham said they were hoping to have him around for Christmas.
"We were able to confirm that Bert is on this release list," said a note on freebert.ca from a family member. "We are working to determine how fast we can get him out of there. We will only believe it once his planes wheels are off the ground."
"This is such great news," another person wrote. "Merry Christmas, Tatham family."
Tatham's mother, Louise Tatham, confirmed the report her son had been pardoned in a telephone interview with The Canadian Press from Duntroon, Ontario. She said she had been notified by the Department of Foreign Affairs in Ottawa, but declined to comment any further.
Tatham was en route to Canada from the Afghan city of Kandahar, where he worked as an advisor to Afghan government's poppy elimination program.
The program aims to convince Afghan farmers to stop growing poppies, which are used for production of opium and then heroin.
During his trial, Tatham's lawyer said traces of hashish found in his urine were inhaled by Tatham as "second-hand smoke." Hashish is produced from marijuana plants rather than opium poppies.
As for the poppy bulbs, the lawyer said Tatham was taking them to Canada "for experiments and education."


However, a reader of the story said (and I would tend to agree): "Hmmm. Tatham was working for an American company hired by the United States State Department. And he was bringing back two poppy bulbs - seeds for new plants - and hashish "for experiments" in Canada?! Anybody else see the logical problem here? Further, if it was legitimate, why didn't he just mail the bulbs to a certified lab? It's clear he intended to grow his own opiate poppies. RCMP should arrest his ass for attempting to import a narcotic substance for purposes of cultivation."