And as the economy faltered, it soon emerged that Ridley and Cornelius, who both worked for trade finance company CCH, had defrauded DIB when they obtained the $501m loan. Dubai prosecutors later said the pair had forged documents and misused the money, and that bribes were paid to bank staff. 

Before the law caught up with them, Ridley admitted the misuse of funds to the bank and jointly brokered a deal to repay the outstanding sums. This would involve successfully developing The Plantation – or giving it up as security if they defaulted on their obligations. In exchange, the bank agreed to bring no further legal action against them. 

But before they could enact their plans, Ridley and the others were arrested and tried by Dubai authorities in what was billed as a landmark case in the emirate’s post-crisis crackdown on corruption.

Soon afterwards, the bank seized control of The Plantation. 

According to Ridley’s testimony, this has prevented any efforts to realise the development’s value even as Dubai’s property market has recovered from its previous dips. He has also alleged the bank’s request to extend his jail sentence by another two decades in 2018 breached the settlement agreement.

DIB rejects this claim, insisting it acted in accordance with its legal duties because Ridley and his former associates still owe around $340m. In response, Ridley has said this debt could easily be settled if the bank made an effort to sell the site – and claimed its refusal to do so has effectively made his situation impossible. Therein lies the question. 

“It is a manifest injustice in those circumstances for the bank to invoke Law 37 to keep me in prison for – in all probability – the rest of my days,” he said in his witness statement. 

This concern was echoed earlier this month by senior Conservative MPs, including Sir Iain Duncan Smith and Sir Peter Bottomley, who accused the emirate of holding Ridley and Cornelius as “hostages until they die of illness or old age”.