GANG WAR ARRESTS ARE A 'PR EXERCISE'

Extradition expert hits out at UAE after kingpin and four others are held in oil state

- BY RICHARD ELIAS

A HUMAN rights lawyer has criticised the arrest in Dubai of five Scots linked to the criminal underworld as a "public relations exercise".

Glaswegians Steven Lyons, Ross "Miami" McGill, Stephen Jamieson, Steven Larwood and a fifth man said to be from Edinburgh were taken into custody by police in the oil-rich city state last week.

The secretive nature of the judicial process in Dubai means it has not been possible to establish exactly what is happening, although it is thought they all face extradition back to Scotland.

For years, the United Arab Emirates was regarded as a safe haven for international criminals but a new approach in recent months has seen organised crime suspects extradited back to countries such as Belgium, France and the Republic of Ireland.