Shropshire sailor Faye Turney told today how she feared she was being measured for her coffin by her captors in Iran.
The leading seaman, whose parents live in Shrewsbury, was the only woman in the party seized by Iranian forces two weeks ago.
She and her colleagues were released on Wednesday and Mrs Turney has sold her story to a national newspaper - a move that has led to criticism of the Ministry of Defence.
It was reported the total fee for the deal with the newspaper and ITV1’s Tonight with Trevor McDonald is in excess of £100,000.
Mrs Turney, mother of three-year-old Molly, was kept isolated from her 14 comrades and was told they had been sent home.
She said: “One morning, I heard the noise of wood sawing and nails being hammered near my cell. I couldn’t work out what it was.
“Then a woman came into my cell to measure me up from head to toe with a tape.
“She shouted the measurements to a man outside. I was convinced they were making my coffin.”She said that she was stripped to her underwear and feared she was going to be raped.
Mrs Turney, whose parents Alan and Rosalind Boswell live in Shrewsbury, said she was forced to write “confessions” about entering Iranian waters and was asked how she felt about “dying for her government”.
Recalling the moment she was separated from her colleagues, she said: “With a blindfold on, I was led away from the rest of the guys.
“All I could hear from behind me was one of them shout: “They’re going to execute us.”
“It was the first time I got really scared. I genuinely believed they might do it.
Mrs Turney, who married her husband Adam in Shrewsbury in 2002, said she later asked an officer in charge where her comrades were.
“He rubbed the top of my head and said with a smile, ‘Oh no, they’ve gone home. Just you now’.
“I was taken back to my cell again and it was my lowest moment.
“All I could think of was how completely alone I was. They could do anything now and nobody would know.”
By Rebecca Lawrence
5 Comments
Mmm…how rather odd! personally I can hear the rush of frantically spinning hot air coming from the direction of the MOD as it scrambles to discredit the images that we all saw of cheery table-tennis, communal curries, quiet games of chess and gratefully accepted gifts. Suddenly its all cocking rifles, ‘interrogation’ ‘psychological pressure’ and coffin measuring. I suspect the truth is somewhere in the middle and no…these service personnel should not accept money for their stories
The MOD have coined a new Name for themselves (Money Over Duty) ……….And Blair and his Insidious Government have bought this country to a new Low ……….. They have also disgraced the Memory of the Hundreds of Thousands of Men and Women in Uniform who Died in Defence of this Realm.
All exservicemen and women should return their Service Medals and Regalia …. the allowance of these individuals to sell their accounts for Money has rendered them Worthless Junk and their Service off no account…………….
I found the who exercise of selling her story, nothing but a money grabbing exercise. She states that she wants to put her side of the story, well she can do that without accepting a fee or having the total fee donated to a Forces Charity.
She joined the Forces not the girl guides, so what if she was stripped to her underwear, I am sure the others being made to do the same.
Did she want special treatment ? why, wants wrong with equality for women, or is equality only when it suits them.
And what I find really disgusting is the way that the Navy is trying to state that hostages situation was exceptional and similar to someone winning the Victoria Cross. To win a VC involves more than stripped to their underwear.
I see that the Army do not allow soldiers to sell their stories and yet the Navy do - How many Navy personnel have been killed in Irag compared to soldiers.
I hope they give a thought for the recently killed soldiers - they will not be able to sell their stories.
A very grubby exercise altogether.
Couldnt agree more.
In the USA news reports are saying these sailors were in Iranian waters. One wonders just what the truth is. Certainly by allowing these cowards to make money out of it all has thrown the attention off other more important questions.
Listening to her interview on tv tonight, it was hardly a terribly harrowing ordeal, and it doesnt appear they were too badly treated. Certainly any pity I had has evaporated now.
One just hopes all this wont come back to haunt us in future, but if indeed we did owe the World’s newest nuclear power an apology, and instead have diplomatically kicked them in the teeth, the consequences could be most worrying. For sure this bunch of ‘heros’ wont be ready to put their lives on the line to protect the country.
drama queens and kings on both sides.truth is blair has done a secret deal over nuclear reactors,with this to secure release of british soldiers and iranian nationals from the yankees.