 Sedat
Ceylan
Ceylan (on the right)
is pictured
with murdered gangster Nik Radev.
He fled Australia in 2001,
soon after Radev and another murdered underworld figure, Houssam
'Sam' Zayat, tortured him for six hours in room 719 of the Stamford Plaza
Hotel, in Little Collins St.
He told police Radev and Zayat,
with whom he had been friends, threatened to kill him and his family if he
didn't give them $120,000.
Radev and Zayat dangled Ceylan
by the ankles from a seventh-floor window of the hotel.
"They got me over the
balcony and I looked straight down,'' Ceylan later said.
"I thought I was going to
die. I didn't yell for help because I was scared. I didn't want to upset them
and make them drop me out of anger.
"Nik and Sam were laughing.
They were joking with each other.
"I couldn't see what was
funny . . . if they let go I would've fallen seven floors to my death.
"I weigh 50kg in total. I
am sure this saved me from death.
"If Nik and Sam had held
someone heavier over the rail, they wouldn't have been able to hold them.''
Ceylan said Radev and Zayat
released him after he agreed to pay up.
But he didn't pay.
Ceylan,
37, was a wanted man.
He was facing charges related to
an alleged scam that resulted in the Australian Taxation Office paying him $2.3
million in GST refunds he allegedly was not entitled to.
Seperate Victoria Police charges
involved an alleged attempt by Ceylan to steal 7kg of gold bullion and more than
$1 million in cash using allegedly stolen cheques.
Police had
feared would be the next victim in Melbourne's gangland war.
The fraudster fled to Turkey with his
money.
An international police
manhunt failed to find Ceylan, but he later contacted Victoria Police and
revealed he was hiding in Turkey.
Australia doesn't have an
extradition treaty with Turkey, but after several discussions with Victoria
Police Ceylan volunteered to return to face his fraud and tax charges.
On January 3, 2007, Victoria
Police arrested Sedat Seylan at Melbourne Airport after the wanted man tipped
them off that he was flying in from Turkey and gave himself up.
Ceylan's sister told the Herald
Sun he had given himself up for the sake of his two young sons, one of whom was
born in Turkey during his five years on the run.
The sister said Ceylan had
wanted the boys, aged seven and two, brought up in Australia rather than in
Turkey.
Ceylan told police he had
decided it was safe for him to come home as those who wanted him dead had been
killed in Melbourne's gang war.
Radev, 48, was gunned down in a
Coburg street in April 2003, and Zayat, 32, was shot dead in September 2003.
Ceylan's sister praised her
brother for ending his time as a fugitive.
"He wants to face his
charges, wipe the slate clean and get on with the rest of his life in Australia
with his family,'' she said. "That's all he wants to do: start his life
over again.
"We are a very close
family, and we are glad he made the brave decision to come home so his children
can have a better life.
"I met his two-year-old son
for the first time at the airport today. It was very emotional.''
Ceylan arrived at Melbourne
Airport from Istanbul at 1.15am and was met by Victoria Police.
He was allowed time for a
reunion with his family before being arrested.
Ceylan made a brief appearance
in Melbourne Magistrates' Court and was remanded in custody to appear in the
County Court on February 26 on the Victoria Police charges.
He was also ordered to face a
March 28 committal mention hearing in relation to the tax charges.
On
June 13, 2007, Ceylan pleaded guilty to six charges including three counts of attempting to
obtain property by deception.
The County Court heard Ceylan met Nik Radev
and Housam Zayat
while in prison in 2000 and after they were all released began
loaning them small amounts of money from his successful exporting
business.
But the court heard things turned sour when the pair asked for a
more substantial sum and Ceylan refused.
Defence lawyer Frank Gucciardo told the court his client was
summoned to a meeting at the Stamford Plaza in Carlton where he was
tortured and held by the ankles out the window until he agreed to
pay up.
Ceylan was released but Radev turned up at his home days later
with a gun, firing bullets and threatening to kill Ceylan and his
family.
Mr Gucciardo said his client was so scared for his own safety he
fled to Turkey.
"It was a very real and dangerous situation ... it became
impossible," he said.
Ceylan was remanded in custody to be sentenced the following week.
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