BRITISH DRUG SMUGGLER IS FREED FROM DUBAI JAIL

A BRITISH woman given a life sentence for smuggling cocaine and
cannabis in the United Arab Emirates has been released, the Foreign
Office said today.

Anna Bartlett, 24, was told to expect to serve at least 25 years in
jail after she was convicted of drug trafficking two years ago.

But she was deported from Dubai yesterday after UAE authorities
"reconsidered her case", a Foreign Office spokeswoman said.

It is not known what had triggered the change of heart.

Miss Bartlett, of Southend-on-Sea, Essex, had admitted taking hashish
and cocaine into the country but denied intending to sell or use the
drugs.

She was found guilty of using, trafficking and importing drugs into
the UAE, which carries a maximum penalty of the death sentence.

She was given a 25-year sentence without parole but five months after
her conviction in May 2001 that was reduced to 10 years.

A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: "She (Miss Bartlett) was
deported from Dubai on June 2.

"It seems that the Ras Al Khaimah authorities considered her case
again and that is why she was released."

Miss Bartlett, also known as Anna Hamilton, was arrested in November
2000 with three other Britons.

Her lawyers claimed she had acted as a courier and had not planned to
sell the drugs.