A Turkish sailor detained in Greece on Feb. 1 was released pending trial on Friday after he was accused of espionage when he took photos of the port his vessel was approaching.

Cengiz Uygur, chief engineer of a Turkish-flagged vessel carrying a cargo of steel rolls, was allegedly taking photos of Port Elefsis north of Athens when the captain of the Greek boat directing the vessel to the port noticed it.

The captain told him to delete the photos. Uygur deleted them but the police detained him anyway. When it was found out that Uygur was a retired sergeant, Greek police accused him of espionage and he was taken into custody.

51-year-old sailor rejected the allegations that he was taking photos of nearby Salamis military base as Greek authorities claimed.

Uygur was released on Friday and was set to return to Turkey while a hearing will be held in Greece on Feb. 9.