Mum of young sailor locked up in Middle East in tears as he returns home

Owen Haggerty was banged up in Bahrain for trying to stop a street brawl in February.

The mum of a Royal Navy sailor locked up in the Middle East has told of her joy at finally having him home.

Owen Haggerty, 22, of Johnstone in Renfrewshire, was banged up in Bahrain for trying to stop a street brawl in February - just a day before had been due to return to Scotland.

He had been sentenced to three months behind bars when his mum Kirsty Reynolds, 41, made an emotional plea to the King of Bahrain begging for him to help free her son.

We told of the family’s joy last month after Owen received a royal pardon and his mum shared the news he finally had landed back in Scotland on Friday - seven weeks after his ordeal began.

She said of the moment she hugged her son again: “It was just so surreal. I almost couldn’t believe he was there.

“I promised myself I wouldn’t cry but as soon as I saw him I just broke down straight away.

“The navy were really good this side and officers met us at the airport and took him straight to Faslane, where he got a medical, then they took us home.

“They’ve given him some home leave for now. He’s just trying to take everything in now.”

Owen had spent the last four months as a minesweeper on HMS Bangor when a brawl erupted during a night out with pals off base to mark the end of his deployment.

He told officers he stayed to help the victim and added he saw CCTV that night that clearly showed he was an innocent party in the altercation.

But he was seized by cops and locked up in a detention centre for several weeks before being sentenced to 90 days in jail following a “10-second hearing” which made no reference to the CCTV.

The family were then left reeling after lawyers claimed the victim, an Egyptian entertainer who reportedly needed stitches for cuts to his head and nose, would settle the case for more than £50,000.

Owen’s big brother Jack had flown out to Bahrain to support him through his ordeal, telling the Record his sibling would be “scarred for life” by his time behind bars.

Meanwhile, his determined mum launched a campaign at home to free her son and penned an emotional letter to King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa after begging MPs and navy chiefs for help.

In her letter, she wrote that “the bond between a mother and her first-born son is one that can scarcely be described in words” as she told how her boy - who had been trying to act as a “peacemaker” - was left facing serious consequences for doing what he thought was right.

She got news her request had been granted at the end of last month.

The Royal Navy previously said they were providing support to Owen and his family and were in regular contact with law enforcement authorities in Bahrain.

They said: “The welfare of our people is a top priority”.

The Foreign Office also said it had been providing assistance to the family.

Kirsty said her son’s freedom is due to the support the family has received in recent weeks and thanked those who had donated more than £3,500 to a crowdfunder supporting the family with their legal costs.

Kirtsy said: “I’m just so glad he’s home now.

“I’m on a Facebook page with other Royal Navy mums and I have had so much support. I’m still going through messages now trying to reply to everybody and want to thank everyone for their support.”