'Fruitcake stalker' who sailed 2,500 miles to propose to British waitress: Turkish admirer's seven-year odyssey ends in arrest

Ramazan Noyan Culum, 38, embarked on 2,500-mile voyage to find 'holiday sweetheart' Courtney Murray

He became infatuated when Murray served him in a restaurant in Cyprus in 2005

Culum, a former businessman, posted updates of his voyage around Europe on a blog

Many of them begged her to marry him

He was arrested near Plymouth by Border Patrols on Friday evening



Culum, who had already been deported from Cyprus nine times, now faces a return to Turkey

To Ramazan Culum’s mind, it was the ultimate declaration of love.

To win the heart of a young British waitress he had met in Cyprus seven years earlier, the Turkish businessman set off on an eight-month odyssey in a tiny yacht, braving stormy seas and travelling 2,500 miles to track her down.

The only problem was that the object of his affections, Courtney Murray, had never indicated any interest in him, and in fact had fled her job in Cyprus to escape his disturbing and persistent overtures.

Obsessive quest for romance: Turkish sailor Ramazan Noyan Culum (left) embarked on a fruitless eight-month, 2,500-mile voyage to track down his 'holiday sweetheart' Courtney Murray, whom he met in Cyprus in 2005



Tiny yacht: Culum made his voyage in the 'Ninova', a 16ft long vessel, pictured on the left in Plymouth with a border patrol boat

This was not enough to deter Culum, however, from a quest that has seen him arrested, lose his job as a company director and, as he put it, get banned from ‘more countries than Osama Bin Laden’.

His bizarre journey has now been brought to an abrupt end after he was arrested in a British port on Friday and told he will be deported.

The 38-year-old’s obsession is said to have begun in 2005 when he met Miss Murray while on a scuba-diving trip in Northern Cyprus, where she was working in a cafe.

Although she took ‘no interest’ in Culum and served him just the once, he is said to have stolen her phone number from the cafe’s wall and began harassing her.

Her friends claim Culum showed up at the restaurant several times – once wielding a knife so he could ‘take her’ – and was eventually arrested and deported from Cyprus. Miss Murray was apparently so terrified she returned to her home, thought to be in Liverpool, where she eventually married.

Infatuation: Culum, a businessman (pictured here with another woman) became obsessed with Murray after she served him in a Cypriot restaurant when he was on a scuba diving holiday in 2005

Happier times: Culum (seated fourth from left) set off from the port of Bodrum in April and spent eight months at sea before being detained near Plymouth on Friday

In early 2011, Culum was still refusing to give up, and tracked Miss Murray down on Facebook, only for her promptly to block him from contacting her on the site.

Undeterred, he set off from Bodrum, Turkey, in April this year, after writing on his online blog that he aimed to marry Miss Murray – despite admitting she ‘abhorred’ him.

During his epic voyage, Culum is thought to have been arrested in both Italy and Spain because he didn’t have the correct papers. He also battled stormy seas in the Adriatic and the Mediterranean, getting hypothermia at one point.

He negotiated the Strait of Gibraltar, and sailed along the coast of Spain and across the Bay of Biscay before heading north towards the English Channel.

On his blog, Culum says he has been imprisoned, gone on a hunger strike and spent time in a mental hospital since the chance encounter with Miss Murray.

Quest for love: Culum travelled from Bodrum in Turkey to Plymouth

Long voyage: The sailor documented his 2,500-mile journey, aboard a 16ft yacht, on a blog, posting a number of pictures of the countries he visited

The website, entitled ‘Hunger Strike for Courtney Murray: The world is not beautiful without you’, states that he has been deported from Cyprus nine times.

He wrote: ‘You stupid girl, you didn’t understand why I come to the UK. I will come there, I will kneel down in front of you. I will kiss your hands and I will propose marrying me. You can marry me or you can imprison me. It’s yours to decide.’

Culum, once a successful businessman and CEO of a mobile phone games firm, claimed he was ‘ready to die’ on his way to reach Britain.

He added: ‘Please accept my proposal and give me a family. I have only one sister. My father and my mother are both died. Courtney, marry me, why don’t you accept? I come.’

Tracked: His online blog featured a photograph of Murray and a map charting his progress across Europe

In his latest entry two days ago, he wrote: ‘I did never dream to immigrate but was trying to gain the heart of the angel of my life. ‘But I’m now at an immigration centre. I’m not happy of course. I love you, excuse me please.’

Miss Murray’s friends and family left comments on his blog posts calling him a ‘fruitcake stalker’.

One post in April, from her Aunt Florence, read: ‘If you ever make it to the UK and make contact with Courtney the police will be informed immediately.



'Courtney is married and happy – all you are doing is making yourself a fool and upsetting Courtney and her family.

Hunger strike: This was the 'proposal' posted on Culum's blog

‘This is to your family and friends who are supposed to love and support you: GET HIM HELP! He sounds like he is totally off his head and a danger to himself and to Courtney.’

Another post, from a friend, said: ‘I’m so sick of you upsetting and distressing my pal. All you are to her is a fruitcake stalker... so either go home or drown.’

The Home Office confirmed a 38-year-old man in a 16-foot yacht, Ninova, was intercepted by the Border Force cutter HMC Valiant late on Friday in the sea off Devon.

Peter Jones, of Border Force, said: ‘This man was attempting to enter the UK without a visa or valid passport but was stopped and will now be removed to his home country.’

Defiant: Culum continued to update his webpage with messages such as this one despite Murray's family leaving comments urging him to give up his quest

Deportation: Murray had caused Culum to be kicked out of more countries than 'Osama Bin Laden', he wrote



