Carl Ratcliffe, 47, jetted to the luxury Susona Hotel in Bodrum with fiancée Natalia Flynn, 49, for what was supposed to be an eight-day getaway on June 10 – but their dream break quickly became a holiday from hell
A Brit holidaymaker says he is trapped in Turkey after being arrested for being drunk when he was actually having a severe asthma attack.
Carl Ratcliffe, 47, jetted to the luxury Susona Hotel in Bodrum with fiancée Natalia Flynn, 49, for what was supposed to be an eight-day getaway on June 10. But their dream break quickly became a holiday from hell.
Just two days after arriving, Carl, who suffers from life-threatening brittle asthma, was struck down by a severe attack while on an evening walk. He was rushed to Bodrum American Hospital and placed in an induced coma, only regaining consciousness three days later.
While waiting for a “fit to fly” certificate so they could return home, Carl suffered a second asthma attack on June 23 after watching England’s match against Ghana in a bar.
Fellow holidaymakers called an ambulance, but Carl claims Turkish police mistook his medical emergency for drunken behaviour and arrested him instead.
He claims he was hauled into custody and later threatened with being “shot” by armed officers if they could not see his hands.
Carl – who was a bank manager at Barclays, but is currently out of a job due to his health – was released the following day after blood tests showed he had no alcohol in his system – but says a judge then stopped him from leaving the country.
He has now been stranded in Turkey for 34 days and says the ordeal has left him facing £10,000 in debts from accommodation, legal fees, living costs and mortgage payments back home.
Carl, from Stevenage, Herts, said: “I’m a strong character but what I have been through is ridiculous. I could have died in the hands of the police on two occasions, while suffering a panic attack and if they had shot me.
“I’m also praying I don’t have another asthma attack as I don’t want to go back to hospital.”
The nightmare came after the couple initially enjoyed the resort following Carl’s recovery – and he even popped the question.
After getting engaged, they were forced to stay in the country while waiting for a fit-to-fly certificate, and Carl felt well enough to go for an evening stroll while the England vs Ghana match was playing.
But after the match he suffered another asthma attack. A paramedic on a motorbike arrived, but Carl fell into it and knocked it over into the road.
Passing police officers allegedly assumed he was intoxicated and arrested him. Carl told Sell Us Your Story: “They thought I was drunk from watching the football game. I told them I could not breathe and I was having an attack but they said they didn’t speak English.
“They wanted me to do a breathalyser test but I couldn’t, so they arrested me for resisting arrest, not producing a breathalyser sample, and being abusive towards them. I wasn’t at all abusive towards them.”
Instead of being taken to hospital, Carl was driven to Bodrum police station where he says he was stripped down to his shorts and locked in a tiny cell.
He said: “It was horrid in there – it absolutely stunk. All I had was a chair and a hole in the corner to go to the toilet which was covered in faeces.
“I managed to calm my asthma attack down after about four hours. I was then taken to another nearby police station where they did mugshots and got my fingerprints.
“During that time if I put my hands down by my side the officers would say to me they would ‘shoot me’. They had handguns on them, and I was scared they were going to use them on me.”
Carl says he spent 14 hours in custody before appearing in court, where blood tests proved he had not been drinking. But despite being de-arrested, he claims a judge banned him from boarding a plane.
Carl said: “The judge recognised that I had suffered a medical emergency, but said the matter relating to the motorcycle required further investigation. We immediately offered to pay for any genuine damage, including through our insurance, but a travel restriction was placed on my passport while the investigation continued.
He added: “We remain unable to leave the country. I feel helpless and stuck in a horror story.”
His mum, Francine Kelly, 65, from County Down, Northern Ireland, said: “They treated him like an animal, I am heartbroken. I just want him home and safe in the UK.”
A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “We are supporting a British man in Turkey, and are in touch with the local authorities.”
Both Bodrum Police and Bodrum American Hospital have been approached for comment.
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