A British TikTok influencer is facing the death penalty after being charged with murdering her boyfriend in Dubai, but she claims she acted in self-defense following abuse.
Brooke George, 23, from Gravesend, Kent, was arrested on June 22 after a 26-year-old British man, reportedly Bill Treeby, died from a stab wound at an apartment in Dubai.
George has since been charged with premeditated murder, and if she’s convicted under UAE law, she could face execution by firing squad.
The woman has nearly 100,000 followers on TikTok, where she posts lifestyle content.
Influencer claims she stabbed man in self-defense
According to campaign group Detained in Dubai, George met the man on Facebook before traveling to the UAE to visit him. While the TikToker described the first trip as “the time of my life,” things quickly went downhill.
The organization claims the relationship became abusive during her second trip, alleging her new lover became controlling, withheld her passport, only booked a one-way ticket, and physically assaulted her.
The group says George acted in self-defense after being punched during an argument where she begged for her passport to be returned.
After fearing for her life, George reportedly grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed him. She was arrested at Dubai airport after being stopped by police.
Group says TikTok influencer may have been victim of violence and exploitation
Detained in Dubai CEO Radha Stirling noted that those closest to George were worried “that she may have been lured to Dubai under false pretences for the purpose of exploitation.”
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“Their concerns were fuelled by his unexplained change in behavior, the one-way ticket, the bikini-clad professional photo shoot arranged during her first visit, the alleged withholding of her passport, Brooke telling friends that ‘things weren’t right’, and her growing fear that she needed to escape,” she said.
Her mother, Thereza George, said she noticed a dramatic change in her daughter’s behavior before the stabbing.
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“The day before the incident, she did not seem like herself,” she said. “She was quieter and not her usual happy, cheerful self.”
Stirling has called for George to be released on bail while authorities investigate her allegations of domestic abuse, arguing the case should be treated as one involving self-defense rather than premeditated murder.
Furthermore, the organization claimed George had been forced to strip in front of male officers at Bur Dubai Police Station, was deprived of access to her embassy, and had to make statements without a lawyer present.
Stirling said there has been a rise in reports of influencers, models, and young women being drawn to Dubai with promises of luxury lifestyles, paid work, holidays, or romance, before later claiming they were subjected to sexual exploitation, coercion, or violence.
“Rather than treating Brooke solely as a murder suspect, investigators must also examine her being the victim of serious violence and possible exploitation,” she added.
