Mahrah Al Nahyan, a 32-year-old Emirati royal related by marriage to Abu Dhabi’s ruling family, was sentenced to a two-year community order after pleading guilty to child neglect at Southwark Crown Court. The conviction follows a June incident where London bystanders found her passed out cold against a pavement railing while a barefoot three-year-old child wandered near oncoming traffic.
Prosecutor Rio Pahlavanpour told the court that concerned pedestrians stepped in after spotting the barefoot toddler playing with a scooter perilously close to moving vehicles in west London.
Nearby, Al Nahyan and an unidentified man lay unconscious on the pavement for approximately 30 minutes.
Court records revealed that when emergency workers revived Al Nahyan, she dismissed bystanders’ concerns, asking: “This is not a slaughterhouse, why do you care so much? Why are you so worried?”
Cocaine binge and judicial scathing
Defense counsel Stephen Vullo KC stated that while Al Nahyan had not ingested cocaine on the day of the incident, severe physical exhaustion from heavy drug use in prior days caused her collapse. Police found drug paraphernalia in her possession.
Presiding Judge Jeremy Johnson KC handed down a strong rebuke during sentencing:
“By leaving [the toddler] to play barefoot in the street while under the influence of drugs, you showed a recklessness and disregard for [the child’s] safety.”
The judge noted the child was narrowly saved by a passerby after chasing a piece of paper into the roadway.
Rehabilitation order and royal allowance
The court heard that Al Nahyan receives a monthly allowance of £8,000 linked to her royal ties. Following her arrest, she checked into The Priory rehab clinic in Woking, Surrey, to undergo residential addiction treatment.
Sentence: 2-year community rehabilitation order.
Financial penalty: £6,114 (approx. ₹7 lakh) in fines and court costs.
Treatment plan: Completion of a 3-month inpatient program followed by outpatient care and Narcotics Anonymous meetings.
