{"id":351947,"date":"2026-06-16T20:56:36","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T15:26:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/?p=351947"},"modified":"2026-06-16T20:56:37","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T15:26:37","slug":"anguished-voice-of-british-dad-tortured-in-dubai-jail-after-latest-abuse-claims-emerge-news-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/16\/anguished-voice-of-british-dad-tortured-in-dubai-jail-after-latest-abuse-claims-emerge-news-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Anguished voice of British dad ‘tortured in Dubai jail’ after latest abuse claims emerge | News World"},"content":{"rendered":"

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That is the anguished voice of a British father who has allegedly faced torture inside a Dubai jail.<\/p>\n

Ryan Pepper, 27, claimed that United Arab Emirates (UAE) officials threatened to smash his hands if he didn\u2019t sign paperwork in Arabic, a language he doesn\u2019t understand.<\/p>\n

That is the primary time Ryan\u2019s voice has been heard publicly since allegations surfaced that he has been beaten, threatened and psychologically abused after he was arrested greater than seven months ago.<\/p>\n

Metro can now reveal that British embassy officials have seen Ryan\u2019s injuries \u2013 including his broken teeth \u2013 first-hand, prompting his sister to beg the UK to do more to free her brother.<\/p>\n

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Ryan Pepper\u2019s family are begging for the UAE to preserve his welfare<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This newspaper can even report fresh details in regards to the alleged mistreatment he has faced, including facing days of near-total sleep deprivation.<\/p>\n

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Start your day informed with Metro’s News Updates<\/strong> newsletter or get Breaking News <\/strong>alerts the moment it happens. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Ryan, a dad-of-two from Ashford,\u00a0Kent, was arrested and locked up in a UAE \u2018hell hole\u2019 on November 3, 2025.<\/p>\n

He had moved out to the UAE to begin a brand new life after a marital breakdown and was working as a sales officer.<\/p>\n

His family have no idea why he was detained, they usually consider the\u00a0Foreign Office\u00a0doesn’t know either.<\/p>\n

In short phone calls together with his sister, Chloe, and thru a note allegedly smuggled out of police detention, Ryan has claimed he was beaten and kept in overcrowded conditions.<\/p>\n

A recording of Ryan\u2019s voice \u2013 obtained by Metro \u2013 shows him talking about his alleged mistreatment by UAE officials.<\/p>\n

The dad-of-two says: \u2018We signed paperwork, we don\u2019t know what we signed. It was all in Arabic.<\/p>\n

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Chloe has spoken with Ryan over the phone where he described his treatment within the detention centre<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018They threatened to interrupt our hands if we didn’t sign that\u2026 we now have no idea what we signed.<\/p>\n

\u2018None of us speak Arabic and they’d not give us a translation.\u2019<\/p>\n

His sister Chloe Pepper, who has begged for proof that Ryan is secure, told Metro<\/strong> that Ryan\u2019s treatment in jail was \u2018absolutely awful\u2019.<\/p>\n

She added: \u2018Torture shouldn\u2019t occur. He has said he’s innocent they usually haven’t any evidence.\u2019<\/p>\n

British consular officials have seen Ryan\u2019s injuries with their very own eyes after they visited him at Al Gharb Police Station in May.<\/p>\n

In an email seen by Metro<\/strong>, staff wrote that \u2018officials observed injuries included a bandage on the fitting side of Ryan\u2019s head and his front teeth were partially broken.\u2019<\/p>\n

Embassy employees also confirmed that Ryan \u2018described the events resulting in his initial arrest\u2019<\/p>\n

\u2018He said he was initially taken to Dubai Criminal Investigations Department (CID) for questioning, then to his apartment where he said that officers caused damage, after which to a different location where he was physically assaulted and held in solitary confinement.\u2019<\/p>\n

Ryan was \u2018distressed when recounting these events\u2019, officials noted, adding that a health care provider had seen Ryan and advised no follow up was needed.<\/p>\n

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A note allegedly smuggled out of the prison claimed that \u2018everyone was beaten up\u2019.
(Picture: supplied to Metro)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018I would like British officials to truly help\u2019<\/h2>\n

Sister Chloe, a 24-year-old nail technician from Kent, claims that despite seeing the injuries, British officials \u2018don’t appear to be they care\u2019 and is shocked they’ve been unable to secure his release.<\/p>\n

She told Metro<\/strong>: \u2018I would like them [British officials] to truly help.<\/p>\n

\u2018They always say, \u201cIf he\u2019s got issues, need to boost it with the authorities\u201d. <\/p>\n

\u2018But they tortured him, why would he raise issues with those that hurt him? I believe the UK doesn\u2019t wish to mess with Dubai, because Dubai might need their very own laws.\u2019<\/p>\n

The family\u2019s local MP Sojan Joseph has also demanded that Foreign Office and British officials secure his freedom.<\/p>\n

The Ashford MP, who has written to government about this and spoken with Chloe, told Metro<\/strong>: \u2018Any violence towards Ryan and other British residents mustn’t be happening, and I hope to see Ryan\u2019s situation resolved swiftly by the embassy and FCDO officials so he will be returned safely.<\/p>\n

\u2018My thoughts are together with his family and friends at this very difficult time.\u2019<\/p>\n

Metro<\/strong> understand that Ryan\u2019s case has been raised directly by Britain\u2019s ambassador within the UAE and with Foreign Office officials in Dubai.<\/p>\n

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Ryan\u2019s two children are waiting for his return back home<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ryan\u2019s family and supporters are also making fresh claims in regards to the abuse he has allegedly suffered inside UAE detention.<\/p>\n

Chloe claims that Ryan told her he was held in small tiled isolation rooms, where they were kept for days without daylight.<\/p>\n

He alleges he was held in these rooms under constant vivid yellow humming lights that made sleep nearly unattainable for so long as 92 days.<\/p>\n

His family also claims that CCTV cameras were switched off every quarter-hour on the request of CID officers so staff could remove prisoner from their cells.<\/p>\n

Ryan\u2019s family have also been told that he has now been moved from Al Gharb Police Station to Sharjah Central Prison, prompting fears about what is going to come next.<\/p>\n

\u2018Our family continues to live in fear and uncertainty\u2019<\/h2>\n

Chloe said: \u2018We hope court will occur now that he has been moved.<\/p>\n

\u2018Not less than if he’s charged we’d know what we’re and get some closure, but for the time being we all know nothing.\u2019<\/p>\n

The nail technician has also written to the UAE ambassador to the UK, His Excellency Mansoor Abdullah Khalfan Juma Abulhoul, to beg for her brother\u2019s safety.<\/p>\n

The letter, which has not had a response, says they’re writing to the UAE \u2018out of desperation, concern, and with nowhere else left to show.\u2019<\/p>\n

Chloe continued: \u2018Our family continues to live in fear and uncertainty surrounding his welfare, health, and future.<\/p>\n

\u2018We respectfully ask whether Ryan\u2019s situation can please be looked into and whether anything inside your power could also be done to be certain that he’s secure, treated humanely, receiving appropriate medical care, and afforded dignity and fairness whilst detained.\u2019<\/p>\n

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Chloe also wrote to the UAE Ambassador about her brother\u2019s case but heard nothing<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Radha Stirling, founding father of Detained in Dubai, who’s assisting the Pepper family, said the UAE \u2018must safeguard Ryan\u2019s welfare now.\u2019<\/p>\n

She continued: \u2018The UAE has forged its investigative net dangerously wide, subjecting British, American and other foreign detainees to coercive interrogations, extortion, humiliation, abuse and torture. <\/p>\n

\u2018It’s unacceptable for Western democracies to be expanding technology, trade and security partnerships with a rustic that tortures our residents.\u2019<\/p>\n

Detained in Dubai has also raised his case with the United Nations Special Rapporteur on torture, in addition to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.<\/p>\n

Neither group has responded to the reports about his case.<\/p>\n

Although Ryan has no idea why he was arrested, Stirling says that he was detained alongside about 15 people.<\/p>\n

She claimed that sometimes authorities arrest dozens of individuals as they investigate one issue, leaving some innocent people in prison for lengthy periods of time.<\/p>\n

An FCDO spokesperson said:\u00a0\u2018We’re supporting a British man who’s currently detained within the UAE.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018We’re involved together with his family and proceed to boost the case directly with the local authorities within the UAE.\u2019<\/p>\n

The United Arab Emirates embassy in London has been contacted for comment<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Get in contact with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

For more stories like this, <\/strong>check our news page<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Arrow<\/title>\n<\/use><\/svg>MORE: The little-known passport rule that might damage your holiday this summer<\/span><\/p>\n

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Arrow<\/title>\n<\/use><\/svg>MORE: Katie Price superfan urges her to \u2018run\u2019 from Lee Andrews after truth over disappearance emerges<\/span><\/p>\n

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To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to an internet browser that supports HTML5 video That is the anguished voice of a British father who has allegedly faced torture inside a Dubai jail. Ryan Pepper, 27, claimed that United Arab Emirates (UAE) officials threatened to smash his hands if he didn\u2019t sign […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":351948,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20691],"tags":[1821,52908,2869,1464,556,2783,11798,1579,395,24529,1027,813],"class_list":["post-351947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world","tag-abuse","tag-anguished","tag-british","tag-claims","tag-dad","tag-dubai","tag-emerge","tag-jail","tag-news","tag-tortured","tag-voice","tag-world"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=351947"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351947\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":351950,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351947\/revisions\/351950"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/351948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=351947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=351947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=351947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}