Co Tyrone man down to his ‘last £30′ and forced to spend Christmas in Dubai

A Co Tyrone man arrested in Dubai over a negative Google review has been denied his chance to return home for Christmas.

Craig Ballentine (33) had been waiting on a court date on December 18 and was hoping to finalise travel arrangements to return to Northern Ireland.

Instead, he has been given a fine and told he must wait until at least February 25 for his next court date.

Having previously worked for a dog groomer in Dubai for six months, he had left a negative online review when he was sacked.

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He says he had a medical certificate for fibromyalgia, with his employer accusing him of illegally absconding.

He was arrested when he returned to Dubai for a holiday with friends in October, with his employer now appealing the recent fine.

Speaking to the Irish News on Monday, Mr Ballentine said he was devastated by the latest setback.

“I just called mum while I was at the Metro Station and I burst out crying,” he said.

“It’s probably all the stress I’ve been holding on to. The lady (his former employer) wasn’t happy with the outcome against me, so she’s decided to put in an appeal.”

With the possibility of another fine, he also faces thousands of pounds worth of legal fees to navigate the latest stage.

A fundraiser to help him meet costs has raised nearly £2,000 so far.

Uncertain if the next court date will finally conclude the dispute, he is now staying with friends for the coming weeks while he figures out how to meet his expenses.

“The British Embassy has mentioned about setting up an emergency fund, because right now I’m down to my last £30," he said.

“I can’t really be staying with friends all the time.”

While grateful of the support from the embassy, he said he was disappointed they had not communicated more with Stormont MLAs raising the case on his behalf.

Mr Ballentine said that on Monday he had been expecting to finalise a lifting of his travel ban and board a flight home.

“That’s when the email was sent to me, confirming the travel ban was not lifted and I had another court case in February,” he said.

“It’s the most manic, craziest thing I’ve ever experienced. Just from a small Google review.”

While unable to share the content of his online comments at this stage, he denied that any of it had contained abusive language.

A Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office spokesperson repeated an earlier statement to say they were supporting a British man in UAE and been in contact with his family and local authorities.