24.08.2025 01:27
A tragic news has come from businessman Halit Yukay, whose boat, which he had set out in to travel from Yalova to Bozcaada, was found broken and partially submerged. Yukay's lifeless body was reached 19 days later. It was learned that Yukay's body was located at a depth of 68 meters in the sea.
The lifeless body of businessman Halit Yukay, who went missing at sea while sailing, was found 19 days later.
HIS BOAT WAS FOUND IN PIECES Businessman Halit Yukay set sail on August 4 at 15:10 from Yalova to Bozcaada on his boat named 'Graywolf'. That same day, the Coast Guard teams were alerted by Yukay's relatives, who had not heard from him. While the teams initiated a search operation, a report was made on August 5 around 14:30 that parts of a boat were seen half-submerged on the sea surface from a commercial ship navigating off the coast of Turanköy in the Kapıdağ Peninsula of Balıkesir.
HE HAD BEEN MISSING FOR DAYS The Coast Guard Southern Marmara Group Command teams went to the given coordinates. A search and rescue operation was initiated with 1 helicopter, 1 diving team, and 7 floating units belonging to the Coast Guard Command. The diving team also dived to the half-submerged boat, but no results were obtained from the searches. During the examination by the teams, it was determined that the serial number of the broken boat's engine matched that of Halit Yukay's boat. Underwater images of the boat, which the Coast Guard Southern Marmara Group Command teams dived to, showed that it was broken apart.
HALIT YUKAY'S LIFLESS BODY WAS FOUND AT A DEPTH OF 68 METERS On the 19th day of the search for businessman Halit Yukay, his lifeless body was found at a depth of 68 meters in the area considered to be the site of the accident.
The location of the body was detected using a lateral scanning device, and images were confirmed with an ROV device. Frogmen from Çanakkale, Samsun, Yalova, and İzmir are continuing their efforts to recover Halit Yukay's lifeless body.
THE CAPTAIN OF THE CARGO SHIP WAS ARRESTED Meanwhile, moments of Yukay's departure from Yalova to Bozcaada have also emerged. In the footage, Halit Yukay is seen leaving the port with his boat, while an investigation conducted by the Marmara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the incident has begun an expert examination on the broken 'Graywolf' boat, which was pulled to Ekinlik Island and lifted ashore with a crane to determine the cause of the accident.
The Bursa Police Department's Maritime Port Branch, along with the Çanakkale Police Department's Maritime Port Branch and the Samsun Police Department's Maritime Port Branch, reported that on the 6th day of the search operations, they found pieces believed to belong to Yukay's boat 'Graywolf' that had crashed into the rocks north of Paşalimanı Island.
THE DISTINCT MARKS AND IMPACTS ON THE BOAT CAUGHT ATTENTION The captain of the cargo ship named 'Arel 7', who is alleged to have collided with Yukay's broken boat and was detained in Yalova on charges of 'causing death by negligence', was released under judicial control with a travel ban, but was re-arrested in Istanbul after an appeal by the Yalova Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. The radar movements of the ship alleged to have collided with Halit Yukay's broken yacht were revealed, and during the Coast Guard teams' examination, it was determined that there were scrape marks on the front of the cargo ship. The Yalova Chief Public Prosecutor's Office is scrutinizing the ship traffic in the area and the route of 'Arel 7', and two photographs showing the scrape marks on the ship were also included in the investigation file. In a photo taken a day before the accident on August 3 in Çanakkale, no marks were seen on the front of the ship, while in a photo taken a day after the accident on August 5 in İzmit, where the ship was delivering its cargo, distinct marks and impacts on the front of 'Arel 7' were noticeable.
Footage of the cargo ship 'Arel 7', which is believed to have collided with Yukay's boat, arriving at the İzmit port has also emerged. In the security camera footage, at around 04:00 on August 5, the captain C. T. of 'Arel 7' and the crew are seen disembarking at 04:17, approaching the front of the ship, and then stopping at the bow to look back at the ship. The photographs of the ship, which had distinct scrape marks on its front, along with these images, were also included in the investigation file.
"I FELT A JOLT, I COULDN'T UNDERSTAND" As the investigation continues into how the scratches on the front of the 92-meter long and 11-meter wide ship occurred, the arrested captain C. T. stated in his testimony at the Yalova court, "We had passed Marmara Island. I felt a jolt, I couldn't understand, I looked ahead and saw two pieces on my right and left."
"I saw it as a piece of wood. I passed through the middle, but after going a little further, I turned back with the ship. I didn't feel comfortable. At that moment, I saw a life buoy. I couldn't understand what the pieces of wood I saw on my right and left were. When I realized it wasn't about me, I continued on my way," he said.
SAMPLE RESULTS ARE OUT, PAINT RESIDUES MATCHED While the investigation continues, samples taken from the area where the cargo ship's scrape marks were found and from the part of Yukay's broken boat where the marks were located were sent to the Bursa Criminal Police Laboratory Directorate. As a result of the examination, it was stated that the paint residues in the scrape marks in front of 'Arel 7' matched those of Yukay's broken boat.