A BRITISH businessman convicted of having sex on a Dubai beach said yesterday he was just "in the wrong place at the wrong time".
Vince Acors, 34, admitted being "extremely naive", but insisted heavy drinking and public shows of affection between unmarried couples were common in the Arab emirate.
He and publishing executive Michelle Palmer, 36, received three-month jail term
s from a Dubai court in October for unmarried sex and public indecency. The sentences were suspended on appeal last month and the pair were allowed to return to the UK before Christmas.
Acors, of Bromley, south-east London, denied he had sexual intercourse with Palmer, of Oakham, Rutland.
But he admitted "physical contact" took place on Dubai's Jumeirah Beach, where they were arrested in the early hours of 5 July. The businessman said many reports about the case were exaggerated and some were "complete lies".
He said: "Everything is available, but it is also illegal. The locals take part in pretty much every single activity as much as the expats do.
"If you go to Dubai, every single hotel has bars, some up to ten bars," he said. "They all hold free or cheap drinks evenings or days.
"Effectively, you are allowed to go into these places and drink a huge amount of alcohol for hardly any money whatsoever – then, when you come outside, you are breaking the law."
Acors went to Dubai in July on a three-day business trip, hoping to drum up work for his telecoms company.
Shortly after arriving, he attended one of the emirate's popular Friday all-you-can-drink champagne brunches.
Acors said he met Palmer, who was then working in Dubai, at another venue later.
They ended up on the beach after a taxi driver dropped them off at the wrong place.
"But obviously with consuming that amount of alcohol over a period of time, your judgment is going to be impaired," he said. "And we both made some poor decisions that evening."
Acors was deported from Dubai and cannot go back for three years, according to his lawyer, Andrew Crossley.
But the businessman indicated he would like to return, saying: "I'm going to make an application to the United Arab Emirates embassy in the UK."
It is unlikely that he will maintain contact with Palmer, who has kept a low profile since coming back to Britain.
Acors said: "I can't see us pursuing this relationship."
