A British woman and Pakistani man have been sentenced to a one year jail term for having sex outside of marriage.

Having sex outside of marriage is banned in the UAE.

The woman got got to know the Pakistani man via Facebook three years ago and in 2016, flew in to Dubai for a week during which she stayed with him in a hotel.

According to a report in the Gulf News the man claimed that he picked her up at Dubai International airport and drove to a flat in Sharjah where a Pakistani religious scholar got them married verbally.

The woman denied the Pakistani man’s marriage claims.

When the man learnt that the woman was preparing to get married to another man in London earlier this year, the Pakistani man began threatening to shame her and reveal to her family that they were married, records show.

In her court statement, the woman claimed that when she told the man that she was calling off their three-year relationship, he rejected the idea reports the Gulf News.

According to the woman’s statement, the man then threatened to publish their photos together on Facebook.

He also called up the potential husband’s family and told them that the woman was married to him and he has a paper corroborating his claims.

She also claimed in court that he threatened to kill her if she married someone else and send photos to her potential in-laws.

Records also show that the woman and her father flew in to Dubai and lodged a criminal complaint against the man, who was then arrested by Dubai Police.

The man meanwhile countered the woman’s threat claims and told the police that she had sent him messages on Facebook requesting him not to divorce her as she was being pressured by her family to keep him out of her life.

The case was referred to the public prosecution. Investigations then revealed that the couple had consensual sex during their meeting in the UAE.

The Dubai Misdemeanours Court sentenced the couple to one year in jail followed by deportation.