The mother of the 23-year-old British student sentenced to life in prison in Dubai has issued a new plea for help from the public.
Mia O’Brien was reportedly arrested in the Middle Eastern emirate last October, having been found with 50 grams of cocaine in her possession.
She was put on trial on July 25, 2025 and convicted after just one day. Mia was thereafter transported to Al-Awir prison, dubbed Dubai’s “Alcatraz”.
In a now-deleted fundraising post meant to cover legal fees and travel costs, Mia’s mother, Danielle McKenna, 46, wrote: “As you can all probably imagine, as her mother, I am absolutely devastated. I haven’t seen my daughter since last October.”
Describing her daughter as a law student with a spotless record, McKenna added:
”Mia is only 23 years old and has never done a bad thing in her life. This is a young girl, who went to university to do law, and unfortunately got mixed up in the wrong so-called friends and made a very stupid mistake and is now paying the price.”
Her heartfelt post asked for help, saying: “So all I ask is if you can donate anything you can spare, even if it’s a £1, it could help up massively and I would be forever grateful. Thank you so much.” She later updated the appeal: “This money will be used to send to my daughter Mia, and also for any legal fees that may arise, and maybe even to go towards getting family over to Dubai to see her, as none of us have seen Mia since last October, so thank you all so much ❤️.”
Crowdfunding platform GoFundMe later removed the fundraiser because it violated its policies. In a statement to The Sun, they explained: “It was removed because it violates Term 9 of the Prohibited Conduct section in our Terms of Service. Term 9 prohibits raising funds on GoFundMe for the legal defence of certain alleged crimes.”
In wake of the update, McKenna moved her fundraising efforts to Facebook.
“I am going to set up my own, as they [GoFundMe] are nitpicking at everything… I would just like to thank everyone,” she wrote, sharing her bank details with supporters.
As per The Sun, Mia was arrested along with a friend and the friend’s boyfriend. The trio were charged with drug dealing – which carries notoriously harsh punishments in Dubai –and Mia was handed a 25-year sentence. The student was also fined $27K by the court.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, McKenna offered an update on her daughter’s situation.
“She’s going through it at the minute. She’s just been transferred to another prison after getting a life sentence. It’s been a massive shock,” explained.
She added: “She was crying on the phone and saying, ‘Oh mum – please forgive me.’ I definitely don’t think she was going to sell the drugs or bring them back. It’s a lot of drugs but there are others involved, and she has just been caught up in it.”
What do you make of the whole situation? Let us know in the comments box.
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