DUBAI: A worker sought to use a psychoactive drug to alleviate occupational stress, he told a Criminal Court bench on Monday.

The Asian man, 29, walked into the Dubai International Airport on Oct.16.2017 with 182 Pregabalin capsules. In court he was accused of possessing banned drugs, a charge he acknowledged.

“I brought them for personal consumption as a remedy for the occupational stress I was experiencing whenever I was at my workplace,” he contended and presented a defence memo. The verdict was adjourned till Jan.18.

An Emirati major from the Dubai Customs said the defendant was suspected upon arrival. A customs inspector summoned him and took him to the body scanning device. A suspicious lump was detected in his shirt’s pocket.