Television personality Katie Price has claimed she has finally made contact with her husband, Lee Andrews, after nearly two weeks of uncertainty surrounding his disappearance in Dubai.
Price, 47, revealed on Wednesday thatAndrews telephoned herfrom Dubai's Al Awir prison, allegedly telling her he had been detained on suspicion of espionage. The brief two minute conversation marked the first contact between the couple since Andrews vanished earlier this month while attempting to travel back to Britain.
According to Price, the call lasted only two minutes but provided reassurance that Andrews was alive. Speaking to British media, she said she had been 'beside herself with worry' and immediately told him she loved him during the hurried exchange.
She explained that Andrews claimed UAE authorities believed he was involved in spying activities, although no official charges have yet been publicly confirmed. The former glamour model added that she still knew very little about the situation and was waiting for further updates from officials and lawyers.
The development came on the same day Price celebrated the 24th birthday of her eldest son Harvey, providing what friends described as an emotional mix of relief and anxiety for the mother-of-five.
Britain's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has so far refused to confirm whether Andrews is being held at Al Awir prison, one of the UAE's most notorious detention facilities.
An FCDO spokesperson repeated aprevious statementsaying officials were supporting the family of a British man and remained in contact with local authorities in the United Arab Emirates regarding his whereabouts.
The mystery surrounding Andrews intensified after Price previously received disturbing messages and videos from him. In one clip, he allegedly appeared hooded with his hands bound, claiming he had been forced into a van and taken to what he described as a 'black site'.
The alarming footage prompted Price to launch public appeals for information, insisting she feared for his safety. Andrews' relatives also reportedly contacted the British embassy and filed a missing persons report after losing communication with him.
However, over the weekend Andrews' father Peter contradicted kidnapping rumours, telling reporters that his son had actually been arrested by UAE authorities. He claimed at the time that Andrews was safe but under detention, although he did not know the precise charges against him.
Source: International Business Times UK
