Britons jailed in Dubai for sex on beach

London businessman Vince Acors and Michelle Palmer were found guilty of public indecency and having unmarried intercourse.

They were sentenced to three months in prison and fined 1,000 dirhams (£155) each after they denied both charges but admitted consuming alcohol.

The pair were arrested on Jumeirah Beach hours after meeting at a £60 all-you-can-drink champagne brunch at the five-star Le Meridien hotel.

A police officer told Dubai's Court of First Instance he had warned them about their inappropriate behaviour, but returned later to find them having sex on a sun lounger.

Mr Acors, 34, from Bromley, initially admitted the offence before later denying the crime, which carries a maximum sentence of six years.

Miss Palmer, 36, from Oakham, Leicestershire, who has been sacked from her job in Dubai as a publishing executive with ITP Publishing Group, said in a statement they were "just kissing and hugging".

Judge Hamdi Abul Kharr ordered they be deported after serving their sentences. After the hearing, Hassan Matter, who represented them, said witness statements, including one from a police officer, were "wrong". He added medical examinations proved Miss Palmer did not have sex.

"We are making an appeal," he said. "I have to find the reason why the judge gave three months. They are innocent. They are at home (in Dubai). They are upset."

Prosecutor Faisal Abdelmalek Ahli said he was disappointed at the sentence. "I'm not happy," he said. "It's very light. It's normal for a sentence to be six months to a year."

Mr Ahli expected the pair, who will remain on bail until the appeal, to serve their full term. He said: "Sometimes people serve half their sentence, but this is so short I expect they will serve it all."

Mr Acors, a telecoms firm director who has a seven-year-old son, is known by friends as "Vince Charming" for his success with the opposite sex. He was in Dubai visiting a friend at a house known as the "Playboy Mansion" because of its wild parties.

According to police sources, Miss Palmer launched an angry tirade at the policeman after being disturbed for a second time. She is alleged to have hurled abuse and tried to hit him with her high-heeled shoe before being restrained and taken to a cell.

Friends said she was a "nervous and scared wreck" and had been having panic attacks since the event.