Two British women held in China for eight weeks after shoe shop dispute

Two British holidaymakers are trapped in China after they were jailed following an argument with a shopkeeper.

Modupe Idowu, 59, and Esther Jubril Badmos, 48, from London, have been detained in the country for more than eight weeks after the dispute in the city of Guangzhou.

According to The South China Morning Post, Idowu and Badmos were allegedly assaulted over a pair of counterfeit slippers during their week-long shopping holiday, which turned into a holiday from hell.

They were detained for 38 days for "provocation and disturbance of peace" but their visas expired during this time.

The pair was met with a £20,000 claim for damages from the shop owner, which they settled with £4,500.

But they cannot be issued with new visas until police provide paperwork that shows the charges have been dropped.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Mrs Idowu's daughter Sarah Murray, who has travelled to China, said: "When I saw her, I thought she looked like an old woman. She could not walk properly. She was so frail and so skinny as she had lost a couple of stone as she barely ate."

The Foreign Office said it was aware of the situation and is providing assistance.

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