 Image copyright Culverwell family Image caption Emlyn Culverwell and his fiancee Iryna Nohai met while working in the UAE 
 
 A South African man and his Ukrainian fiancee have been detained in the United Arab Emirates for unlawful sex, a relative says. The South African man and his Ukranian fiancee were reportedly arrested after a doctor in Abu Dhabi who treated Ms Nohai for stomach cramps discovered she was pregnant. 'It must feel as if she is being raped by the authorities' 
 
 Linda said she was worried that Iryna’s "stomach cramps" could have been signs of a miscarriage, as she was still in the early stages of her pregnancy. Mr Culverwell's mother has pleaded for their release, saying "the only thing they did wrong was fall in love". “We don’t even know if they have legal representation.” 
 
 Linda said the Ukrainian embassy had become involved and was trying to obtain permission for the two to get married or for them to be deported. All the Department of International Relations is prepared to say is that we have ‘to be patient’, but there are three lives at stake here.“ 
 
 A spokesperson for the department, Nelson Kgwete, said the couple was being prosecuted in terms of UAE laws and that the South African Government could do nothing about it. The South African government has advised the couple to get legal assistance, the BBC's Pumza Fihlani in Johannesburg says. In 2008, a British couple, Vince Acors and Michelle Palmer, were given jail sentences for having sex in public in the UAE after they were caught together on a Dubai beach – although they had their sentences suspended when they signed a court document agreeing to marry on their return to England.
– On Jan. 29, a 27-year-old Ukrainian woman living in the United Arab Emirates went to the doctor after experiencing stomach cramps. What came next: a pregnancy diagnosis—and her arrest for unmarried sex, which is illegal in the UAE. Iryna Nohai and her South African partner, Emlyn Culverwell‚ 29, have been detained without charge in Abu Dhabi since, the BBC reports. "The South African government is aware of the case, but unfortunately cannot provide legal assistance" regarding what it says is UAE law, a rep tells News24. "The only thing they did which was wrong, was to fall in love," says Linda Culverwell, who tells News24 that her son and Nohai got engaged on Jan. 27, two days before their arrest. She says the Ukrainian embassy is trying to intervene, and that it sees two alternative outcomes: They could marry or be deported. Otherwise, if charged and found guilty the pair could face time behind bars. The BBC notes that Culverwell has been working in the UAE for the past five years, and his employer reportedly told his family no charges have been filed because authorities are allegedly conducting "tests" aimed at determining how long Nohai has been sexually active. The couple's case is not an expat first: The Independent reports that an unmarried UK couple were sentenced to three-month terms in 2008 for having sex on a beach in Dubai, though their sentences were suspended upon appeal. (A woman was jailed in Dubai after reporting rape.)