The 42-year-old was arrested under strict new laws in the United Arab Emirates that ban donations or advertising of charities not registered in the country.
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She said: “His wife is under extreme stress”.
Mr Richards grew up in the Australian city of Adelaide but lived with his family in London before moving to Dubai to work as an economic development adviser eight years ago.
But Richards’ act of kindness was met with an unexpected effect on July 28, when he was arrested and held for 22 days. Penalties for the crime include prison terms between 2 months and 1 year, and a fine of up to 100,000 AED (£20,000).
Donations or advertising fundraising campaigns without prior written approval from the Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department was made a criminal offence past year.
Ms Stirling said he was unaware about the “bizarre” new charity laws and had most probably been turned in by someone who read his Facebook post. She can only take the clothes to him once a week. This isn’t just a matter of comfort for the refugees-winters there are so cold that people (especially children) freeze to death there every year.
“I don’t think the law was meant to be enforced in this way, does the UAE really want to stop people donating to charities?”
Richards had shared a post from US-based charity, The Zwan Family Charity, linking to their crowdfunding page.
The charity gives tarpaulins to people living in Afghanistan refugee camps.
Detained in Dubai, which helps foreigners overseas, released a statement saying the father was being kept in “appalling conditions” in the Al Murraqabat police station and had made a request to be transferred to a prison.
She said: “It’s the indefinite detention, it can go on for months, years”.
According to the Telegraph, Radha Stirling, from the group Detained in Dubai, said expats often fall foul of the law in the UAE and can easily become victims of other people because it’s so easy to make a police complaint about someone.
“In a case like this where it’s so obviously unjust we are hoping for diplomatic intervention which the Australian Government has done in the past”.
The British Foreign Office said that it was “providing support” in Richards’ case.
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The UAE Embassy did not return the ABC’s inquiries.
