Briton 'did not die from Dubai arrest injuries'

A BRITISH tourist who died in police custody in Dubai hit his head against a wall while resisting officers - but this did not cause his death, local authorities have said.

Lee Brown, 39, was arrested after being accused of trying to throw a female housekeeper off an internal balcony at the luxury Burj al-Arab hotel.

He died on 12 April amid claims that officers punched and kicked him during his time in custody at the Bur Dubai police station.

Issam al-Humaidan, Dubai's attorney-general, said police had described how Mr Brown was in a "hysterical temper" when he was arrested for allegedly physically and verbally abusing the housekeeper.

The Briton kept beating a metal mesh barrier in the police car as he was driven away and suffered an injury to his nose after hitting his head against a wall "during violent resistance", the top law official said.

But a forensic report said the "minor" injuries found on Mr Brown's body could not have caused his death, Mr Humaidan said.

A post-mortem examination concluded that he died from choking on his own vomit.