Ex-Oman cricketer debunks ‘drugs news’

Muscat: Oman-based Indian cricketer Hemal Mehta was at home with his family when friends rang to tell him he was making headline news across the world - for all the wrong reasons.
Stunned Hemal googled his own name to discover a “news” story which stated he had just been arrested at John F. Kennedy airport in New York for attempting to smuggle 20 kg of cocaine into the USA.
Hemal Mehta, who retired from Oman’s national cricket team in 2014, was named in the fabricated news report published on Saturday morning on the news website USA Now.
According to the site, Mehta was apprehended at New York City’s John F Kennedy International Airport with 20kg of illicit substances, which had been concealed in bags of coffee. The report said he was then taken to a private room, where he was handed over to Port Authority police officers in New York. The news was later widely debunked as fake.
Mehta spoke to Times of Oman on Sunday and said he was amused to see his name used in publications halfway across the world. “I was with my wife on Saturday morning when I received a call from a friend who told me to check my WhatsApp groups,” he recalled. “I was surprised to see that I had been named in this news piece, because I was with my wife in Oman. I showed this to her and she was just as surprised as I was. I didn’t think, even in my wildest dreams, that someone would do such a thing.”
“When I came to work on Sunday morning, my colleagues were a little intrigued, but I think that was it,” added Mehta. “The moment I heard of this, I sent messages to all of my friends and family telling them that this was fake news, and for me, the matter ended there.”
Mehta – who played for the Oman team for more than 12 years – took part in two ICC Cricket World Cup qualifiers and one Twenty20 international qualifier for the country. The Oman Cricket Association has promised him full support. “Both the Oman Cricket Association and my place of work have offered me unconditional support, and I am thankful for that,” Mehta said. “I did not talk to or look for the people who spread the news about me, because I have my own limitations and felt there was no point in going after them,” he added. “I think it is best to just forget this incident and move on.”
Syed Jameel, who serves as manager of the Oman cricket team, played alongside Hemal for many years, and knew him well. “Hemal is a decent man, with a very good family and he has children of his own,” Jameel told Times of Oman. “There is no way he would have ever done such a thing, and I think this is just fake news. I don’t know why anyone would accuse him of even doing this, because he was here in Oman with his family.”
“Hemal and I played together on many occasions and I also worked with him, and I can clearly say he is an excellent cricketer and a very good all-rounder who has played for Oman for many years,” he added. “With the grace of god, he is a great person and I am sure anyone who knows him will also say the same thing.”