NYC college student, Elizabeth Polancos De Los Santos, 21, celebrates 'dream' as she lands back in Big Apple after being released from Dubai on overnight flight following one-year jail sentence for tapping airport guard's arm during strip search

A New York City college student who was released by the United Arab Emirates just hours after being sentenced to a year in prison has landed back in the Big Apple.

Elizabeth Polanco De Los Santos, 21, said touching down back in the city early Wednesday morning was 'like a dream' following her months-long ordeal in Dubai.

The Lehman College student was sentenced to a year in jail after an airport security guard accused her of tapping him on the arm to help her get dressed after a strip search to check her medical waist binder on July 14.

But yesterday it emerged her sentence was being commuted and she would be allowed to return to the US. The student arrived back in New York City around 8am and immediately celebrated her return.

De Los Santos plans to remain in New York after returning from Dubai early this morning, according to her lawyer

Elizabeth Polanco De Los Santos texted lawyer Radha Stirling to confirm she is now back on US soil following her months-long ordeal which left her detained in Dubai

In a message to lawyer and CEO of Detained in Dubai Radha Stirling who has been helping with her case, she said her return felt 'like a dream right now'.

De Los Santos's ordeal began after she was left half-naked and 'violated' when airport employees told her to strip and remove a medical waist binder she was wearing at the time.

The frightened student claimed she 'gently' tapped a security officer on the arm for assistance in reapplying the binder, but was instead accused of 'assaulting' the staff member.

Despite paying a hefty AED 10,000 ($2,722) fine she was detained in the country and slapped with a year long jail sentence.

But thanks to tireless work from Stirling and others the student has been allowed to return to New York, where she plans to stay with her mother for the foreseeable future, according to the lawyer.

Elizabeth Polanco De Los Santos is said to be ecstatic to be heading back to the US after having her sentence commuted

The 21-year-old student was accused of 'assaulting and insulting' an airport security guard during a strip search earlier this year

The student, who attends Lehman College in the Big Apple, was passing through the nation from Istanbul on her way to New York when she was detained with a friend.

Instead of the 10-hour layover she was expecting, De Los Santos was subjected to a months-long ordeal after inadvertently tapping the airport security guard.

The female officer accused De Los Santos of 'assaulting and insulting' them, which Santos denied.

She was forbidden to travel home, and this week was sentenced to a year behind bars despite paying an AED 10,000 ($2,722) fine.

During her nightmare ordeal inside the airport, De Los Santos said she had tried to alert security that she was wearing a brace with an underwiring on it.

She told airport officials she had recently had surgery and was mandated to wear the surgical brace around the clock.

The student was stunned to then be carted off to a private room and ordered to remove the brace, which left her feeling 'violated' as it left her semi-naked.

After she was eventually cleared, De Los Santos was unable to get the brace back on herself, leading her to try and get help from her friend.

De Los Santos has said her traumatic experience in the Dubai airport left her feeling 'violated', and has since had to pay over $50,000 for accommodation and legal fees 

Pictured: Dubai's Al-Awir Central Prison located in the United Arab Emirates, where De Los Santos was reportedly fearing she may be sent to serve her harsh sentence 

A doctor shows a hallway at the medical center of Dubai's Al-Awir central prison in the United Arab Emirates

But her decision to 'gently' touch a female customs officer's arm to get the attention of her friend sparked chaos, with the staffer accusing De Los Santos of assault.

After hostilities ensued inside the airport, De Los Santos immediately paid a fine and expected to be let go, but was instead forbidden from leaving the country pending a court date after prosecutors asked for the option to send her to jail.

With her case appealed by customs officials, the delay left her in agonizing limbo for months, all while forking out $50,000 to afford accommodation and legal fees in the lucrative nation.

At the time of her detention, De Los Santos said: 'We thought it would be a more modern and futuristic city, but we were completely wrong.'

She also claimed her mother has been left in 'shock and suffering. She is really worried and keeps crying.'

Despite previously being told she would be allowed to leave the country, her ongoing case and the unpredictability of Dubai's legal system reportedly led her to fear she would wind up being housed at the infamous Al Awis prison.

The 21-year-old's predicament led to widespread calls for her release, alongside warnings to other travelers to be extra cautious in the Middle Eastern nation. 

Detained in Dubai's Stirling, speaking before De Los Santos was freed, referenced the case of TikTok influencer Tierra Young Allen, who was held in the same country for three months earlier this year for 'shouting' at a car park employee.

TikTok influencer Tierra Young Allen, who was held in Dubai three months earlier this year for 'shouting' at a car park employee, is another recent example of why some are calling for extra vigilance in visits to the Middle Eastern nation 

'One thing these Americans have in common is that they regret the day they ever decided to visit Dubai and they all continue to intensely warn other citizens to avoid the region,' Stirling said.

Stirling told DailyMail.com that the sentence imposed on Elizabeth Polanco De Los Santos was a prime example of how holidays to the United Arab Emirates can end in a nightmare.

Describing it as a potential 'one way ticket' to jail, Stirling said tourists have in the past fallen foul of the harsh laws in the desert paradise known for its glitz and glamour and favored by an army of influencers.

'Tourists are vulnerable to vindictive, false and unevidenced allegations that could leave them languishing in notorious jails,' she said. 

'They are vulnerable to extortion schemes like we see from airport staff, rental car agents, taxi drivers and so on... For many tourists a trip to Dubai can be a one-way ticket to jail.'