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The family of a soccer coach jailed in Dubai are hoping the Duke of Cambridge can help persuade authorities to release him.
24-year-old Billy Hood was initially jailed for 25 years after police found four bottles of cannabis oil in his car.
He said he didn’t know the CBD oil and a vape pen were there when he took a friend to the airport from London.
Billy claimed he was convicted of drug trafficking, selling and possession after being forced to sign a confession in Arabic – which he didn’t understand.
His sentence was reduced to 10 years in December.
His mother Breda Guckion and brother Alex Hood told Good Morning Britain (GMB) they want Prince William to help bring him home.
Alex told GMB presenters Ben Shephard and Kate Garraway: “I would happily ask his (Prince William) for his help if there is anything he can do.
‘If he can only really look at Billy’s case, see how Billy is being treated, see why he’s in prison. I mean it’s crazy. Then he would understand, so we call for his help.
Breda added: “Her mother, Prince William, was a philanthropist.
“And all I’m asking is that you’re a family man and we just want the last piece of our puzzle home, so please help us in any way you can.
“Please read Billy’s story and bring Billy to our home.”
Alex said they have already asked Prime Minister Boris Johnson for help.
Breda and son Billy Hood (Image: SWNS)
Billy Hood in Dubai (SWNS)
Billy was outside his Dubai home on January 31, 2021 when police tasered him in the face as he walked to his car to retrieve a phone charger.
Hood thought it was a mistaken identity, so he volunteered to be searched and provided a urine sample.
The ex-Kensington and Ealing Borough FC player was taken to Al Barsha police station where he spent the next fortnight in isolation.
Authorities held Billy in custody at the station until a court sentenced him in October.
Billy’s friend Alfie Cain said he was beaten at the police station for five days as authorities tried to force him to confess to drug-related offences.
The football agent told the Sun: “He told me cops tasered him, slapped him in the face and only fed him bread and some water.
“Billy said they told him he could go home if he signed the paper so he relented and signed the piece of paper in Arabic which he had no idea what he was signing but he just wanted it to be stops.”
His legal team said he broke pressure after four days and signed a confession after being told, “If you don’t sign, you will never leave the CID (Criminal Investigation Department).”
Billy Hood’s family have asked Prince William for help (Image: Getty)
Legal in the UK and many other countries, CBD vape oil is often used to relieve pain, stress and anxiety.
However, it is banned in the United Arab Emirates as it contains traces of THC – the psychoactive compound in cannabis.
The country has a no-holds-barred approach to drugs, and courts do not require essential evidence for convictions.
Trafficking in human beings carries a death penalty and possession of even the smallest amount carries a minimum of four years’ imprisonment.
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