An Air Force veteran and his brother were jailed in the United Arab Emirates last week after being “drugged” during a yacht party.

Joseph and Joshua Lopez were convicted of alcohol consumption and sentenced to a month in prison in Dubai for the alleged drug. seconds a Detained in Dubai (DID), a legal organization that aims to help foreign nationals imprisoned in the United Arab Emirates. The brothers could see their prison terms extended even further due to pending charges of “damaging government property and assaulting an officer” related to the yacht incident.

“They were drugged by locals after being invited to a yacht party by a local resident,” DID CEO Radha Stirling wrote in a press release on the organization's website calling for the brothers' release . “They were given a drink on board the yacht and the next thing they remember being taken away by plainclothes police officers in an unmarked vehicle.”

#Ohio Veteran Joseph and brother Joshua Lopez expect to be jailed #Dubai any day now @JDVance he says he's helping out behind the scenes and hopefully he can get these brothers home ASAP! #JDVance https://t.co/nKZom52vo9

— Radha Stirling (@RadhaStirling) August 19, 2024

The brothers had traveled to the United Arab Emirates on May 25 to try to capture social media content for Joseph, who has since become a social media influencer after leaving the Air Force and is the current holder of the “Mister Louisiana” contest, the New. York Post informed.

On June 2, after partying at a local nightclub, an Uber driver offered to take them to an afterparty, where they were brought large amounts of food and drinks they hadn't ordered, according to the NYP . The brothers received a large bill 20 minutes after their arrival, and were then invited to a yacht party where they were given drinks.

“This girl brought me a drink, and after she brought me this drink, I don't remember anything,” previously Joseph Lopez. he said Cincinnati's Fox 19 Now.

After the arrest, the brothers were taken to the Al Barsha police station, according to the NYP. Despite the brothers' requests, Emirati law enforcement officials allegedly refused to test the Lopezes for “the presence of any drugs or sedatives,” according to the DID.

“The government portrays Dubai as a safe and crime-free destination for tourists, but the fact is we see tourists targeted all the time,” Stirling wrote in the press release. “It's a myth that Dubai is crime-free. They just don't recognize it because it's bad for business.”

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