Travel bloggers Jolie King and Mark Firkin, known on Instagram as T.W.O. – The Way Overland, have been arrested in Iran for flying a drone without a permit. They were detained in July after they were caught operating the drone near Tehran, and they are now facing up to ten years in prison.
Jolie and Mark are a couple who quit their nine-to-five jobs in order to travel the world together. They started the journey in their native Australia and planned to end it in London. They frequently shared their adventures with followers on Instagram, and although they were living a dream, it appears that it has turned into a nightmare.
The couple’s families said that the whole situation is a “misunderstanding” and that they were reportedly “unaware of the strict drone laws employed by the country.” Daily Mail reports that Iranian authorities had informed Jolie that she was being detained in hope of a prisoner swap.
It’s sad to think that all of this could have been avoided by just googling “drone laws in Iran” and a couple of clicks. But of course, I honestly hope that the couple will be released and that they won’t spend a decade in prison simply for being uninformed.
[via FStoppers]
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