Mongolian couple’s walk along the Bosporus ends tragically

Tragedy struck two prominent Mongolian politicians whose daughter and nephew drowned in Istanbul's Bosphorus on Wednesday night. Mongolian Justice Minister and brother of a renowned wrestler turned lawmaker arrived in Istanbul to fly the bodies of their daughter and son respectively back home.

Sereter Bat Erdene, 23-year-old nephew of Mongolian wrestler turned politician Badmaanyambuugiin Bat Erdene and his 22-year-old girlfriend Sarangeral Dorligjav, daughter of Mongolian Justice Minister Dambii Dorligjav died on Wednesday. The young man drowned when he fell from a wall overlooking the Bosporus outside the upscale Four Seasons hotel in Istanbul's Beşiktaş district where he was staying with his girlfriend. Sarangeral Dorligjav jumped into the icy water to rescue him but both went missing.

Hotel staff found a woman's handbag in the courtyard and then checked the security camera footage, seeing the couple falling and jumping into the sea. They alerted police and police divers combed the area and discovered the bodies several hours later.

The families of the young couple arrived in Istanbul from Ulan Bator late Thursday to fly the bodies back to Mongolia for burial. The grieving parents did not speak to the press surrounding them at the airport. They were scheduled to fly back to Mongolia with the victims' bodies on Friday night.

Bat Erdene and Dorligjav had arrived in Istanbul on February 7 from Switzerland where they both attend university, for a Valentine's Day vacation. Turkish media outlets reported that the couple returned to their hotel after drinking at a night club in the city's Ulus district. After entering the hotel, the two went out to the courtyard overlooking the Bosporus and Bat Erdene climbed over the retaining wall separating the hotel from the sea. He reportedly lost his balance and fell into the water and his girlfriend jumped after him in a bid to save her boyfriend.