Turkish captain referred to criminal court for kidnapping 8 Egyptians

The Port Said Prosecution chaired by the Public Prosecutor Consultant Mohamed Sabry referred Helmy Kozaly, the captain of the Turkish ship Obwangine, and his assistant, Nagui Al Deriraly, to the Criminal Court.

The public prosecutor charged them with kidnapping 8 Egyptians on board the Turkish ship on October 23 and keeping them on the ship. They were also charged with ignoring the instructions of the Suez Canal Authority.

The 8 Egyptians, who are bailiffs and staff of the maritime agency through which the ship was working, had gone on board the ship to carry out a court ruling to seize the ship for payments due to the Egyptian authorities.

The captain of the ship kidnapped the 8 Egyptians and headed to Turkey, which returned the kidnapped Egyptians a week later. The captain and his assistant are being tried in absentia, as they are in Turkey.