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Escape From Dubai

In another this-is-too-good-to-be-true story, Curt Anderson covers former French intelligence officer Herve Jaubert, who believed he was essentially being held captive in Dubai when his passport was confiscated by authorities amid a dispute with his employer, a powerful government-run conglomerate. He claimed he was threatened with torture and worried each day he would be arrested. From the AP article:

So Jaubert disguised himself as a Muslim woman and fled the country. The accomplished diver hid scuba gear under the head-to-toe abaya. He swam out to the area's only patrol boat and cut the fuel lines. Then, he said, he launched his rubber dinghy, started the motor and piloted it six hours to meet an awaiting sailboat.
Now he's in South Florida, embroiled in a federal lawsuit over an ill-fated business venture with Dubai World Corp., which says the 2008 escape story is one of his many lies. Jaubert sued the company, claiming the failed plan to build recreational submarines for tourists and the super-wealthy cost him millions in lost business opportunities.
"I lived with fear in my stomach for more than a year. Every day when you wake up, you expect to be picked up by the police," Jaubert said.

And we even get a video!

In other words, we should all be thankful that we weren't in Mr. Jaubert's shoes. Think Midnight Express:

On that note, Happy Thanksgiving!

Full post as published by Southern District of Florida on November 25, 2009 (boomark / email).