{"id":47113,"date":"2026-09-04T06:11:13","date_gmt":"2026-09-04T06:11:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/47113\/"},"modified":"2026-09-04T06:11:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T06:11:13","slug":"2-captains-arrested-after-collision-off-istanbul-as-search-continues-for-sunken-ship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/47113\/","title":{"rendered":"2 captains arrested after collision off Istanbul as search continues for sunken ship"},"content":{"rendered":"

An aerial view shows the commercial vessel ALSU, which was involved in an accident in the Marmara Sea, continues to be held off the coast of Silivri, Istanbul, T\u00fcrkiye, September 03, 2026. (AA Photo)<\/p>\n

\n September 04, 2026 08:49 AM GMT+03:00\n <\/p>\n

Turkish authorities arrested the first and third captains of a cargo ship involved in a collision off Istanbul that sank another vessel on Wednesday, as search efforts continue for the missing 10-member crew and the ship\u2019s wreckage.<\/p>\n

The Turkish-flagged Tugberk Imamoglu, carrying rolled steel and construction rebar from Kocaeli to Aliaga, collided with the Turkish-flagged Alsu<\/a> around 3 a.m. local time (GMT+3), about 18 nautical miles south of Istanbul\u2019s western district of Silivri.<\/p>\n

Tugberk Imamoglu is believed to have sunk after the collision, and authorities have been unable to reach its crew.<\/p>\n

More to Read<\/p>\n

\"Wreckage<\/a><\/p>\n

Two captains taken into custody<\/p>\n

Nine of the 10 people aboard Alsu, excluding the cook, gave statements as suspects in the investigation. They were kept aboard the vessel under gendarmerie supervision while the criminal and administrative inquiries continued.<\/p>\n

Alcohol tests on the suspects came back negative, while blood samples were also taken for further examination, the Silivri Public Prosecutor’s Office said.<\/p>\n

Following an initial expert report on the potential fault of those involved, six suspects were taken to Silivri Courthouse. The first and third captains were referred to a criminal judgeship with a request for detention, while the other four were referred for judicial control.<\/p>\n

The court ordered the arrest of Alsu\u2019s first captain, Ahmet Erarslan, and third captain, Murat Evciman. The other four suspects were released under judicial control.<\/p>\n

\"The
\n <\/p>\n

\n The commercial vessel ALSU, which was involved in an accident in the Marmara Sea, continues to be held off the coast of Silivri, Istanbul, T\u00fcrkiye, September 03, 2026. (AA Photo)\n <\/p>\n

Captains allegedly failed to maneuver<\/p>\n

Tahsin Dogruyol, the owner of the sunken ship, told Turkish media that the ship\u2019s captain called him during the incident and reported that the other vessel was heading toward them.<\/p>\n

“He pierced us at our weakest point. He hit the weakest part of the ships. I think that\u2019s where it capsized,” <\/a>Dogruyol said, adding that he suspected the other vessel\u2019s crew lacked sufficient experience in maneuvering.<\/p>\n

Radio communications between the two captains also emerged after the collision, indicating that the crews had noticed each other before the incident and communicated about changing course.<\/p>\n

Divers are expected to inspect the underwater sections of Alsu as the investigation moves forward.<\/p>\n

Suspect statements indicated that two or three members of Tugberk Imamoglu\u2019s crew were on deck before the ship sank. Authorities have found no evidence that they survived, while the wreckage has yet to be located.<\/p>\n

The prosecutor\u2019s office has ordered expert examinations and the collection of navigation, radar and communications records, as well as other evidence, to establish how the collision occurred and determine any responsibility.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

September 04, 2026 08:56 AM GMT+03:00<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"An aerial view shows the commercial vessel ALSU, which was involved in an accident in the Marmara Sea,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":47114,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[29],"class_list":["post-47113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-istanbul","tag-istanbul"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47113","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47113"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47113\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47114"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/turkiye\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}