'Sassy Trucker' Tierra Allen Traumatised After Dubai Arrest for Shouting

An influencer held in Dubai for months with the threat of jail time hanging over her following a public argument is now on her way home to the United States.

Houston woman Tierra Allen, a driver who runs the popular Sassy Trucker account on TikTok, had been stranded in Dubai for three months after her passport was confiscated while she was there on vacation in May. The 29-year-old was told she had been arrested for raising her voice to a male employee at a car rental company following a dispute, but Dubai Police told Newsweek that she was being investigated for "slandering and defaming" the man.

"It was a very traumatizing experience for me," Allen told Newsweek as she was traveling home.

Radha Stirling, chief executive of legal advice organization Detained in Dubai, which helped free Allen, told Newsweek: "I've just spoken to Tierra. She is still in shock about what happened to her and feeling blessed that she managed to leave the country today. She's aware that if she didn't leave today, a new travel ban was to be issued against her in the morning and she would be stuck there indefinitely. She never wants to return to Dubai after her experience which she will talk about publicly soon."

Allen's mom, Tina Baxter, spoke with Newsweek exclusively in July and revealed her fears that Allen was buckling under the pressure, saying she was "in panic mode and afraid."

The "nightmare has come to an end," said Detained in Dubai. "Tierra Allen boarded a flight home to the United States today [Tuesday, August 8] after police lifted her travel ban. She nearly didn't make it through airport immigration and thought she would be jailed, but all worked out and Tierra is now relieved her nightmare has come to an end."

Allen has been banned from returning to Dubai and paid police a 5,000 dirham fee ($1,361) to lift the travel ban so she could leave. Newsweek contacted Dubai police for comment.

Laws governing public behavior in the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) are wildly different from those in the U.S., and the Department of State has warned Americans considering visiting the predominantly Muslim country, that: "Public decency and morality laws throughout the U.A.E. are much stricter than in the United States."

Illegal activities include homosexual relationships, public displays of affection, dressing immodestly, and swearing or arguing in public.

Allen, originally from San Diego, California, is known online as "The Sassy Trucker" and documents her journeys on various social media platforms. She was once featured by CNN in a 2021 article about female truckers becoming TikTok influencers. Her TikTok page boasts more than 182,000 followers, while her Instagram has almost 52,000 accounts following it. Her Facebook page is followed by 61,000 accounts.

But a dream holiday to visit friends in Dubai turned into a months-long ordeal following an argument with a worker at a local car rental firm. Allen's mom was unsure of the name of the firm, but said her daughter told her that she and her friend had rented a car together when they were involved in a "very minor fender bender." There were no injuries, minimal damage to the cars, and the rental vehicle was fully insured. But the vehicle was seized by police for a short investigation.

Allen's trouble began when she later returned to the rental firm to collect her belongings, which had been in the car when it was seized. She says the worker demanded cash in return for her purse and personal items. Allen insisted that could not be right and the pair began to argue. She claims he became aggressive and shouted at her, even chasing her out of the building, and admits she screamed back at him claiming she was terrified. For his part, the worker said she was the aggressor.

"Dubai police received a complaint from a car rental office, accusing her of slandering and defaming an employee amidst a dispute over car rental fees," the Dubai Police General Command told Newsweek in July. "The individual was questioned as per legal procedures and subsequently released pending the resolution of ongoing legal proceedings between her and the car rental office."

Allen was forced to pay for an Airbnb as she waited for the investigation to conclude.

Detained in Dubai called on Allen's political representatives, including Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee and Senator Ted Cruz, "to liaise with the U.S. Consulate in the U.A.E....before she (Allen) ends up in a desert prison."

In a statement, Cruz's staff previously said: "We have spoken to the family of Tierra Young Allen and have contacted the Department of State about the case. Sen. Cruz will continue to gather details and engage on this case until Ms. Allen is returned home to her family."

Discussing the toll the case was taking on her daughter, Baxter said: "I have never seen her so stressed."

Admitting she hasn't been sleeping since her daughter got caught up in the legal minefield overseas, she added: "She's such a sweet person. She's a very soft-spoken, sweet young lady. And a very strong, very positive young lady. She's tried to hide her stress from me. But I was on a video call with her and I could see the pain in her face. I told her, 'It's ok to cry, allow your emotions to be released, don't hold it all in.'"

"She just wants to return safely home to the U.S. and return back to work," Baxter said of her daughter.

Update 08/08/23, 3:41 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.