Daughters of aid worker Paul Urey say justice will 'never be done'

The daughters of a British aid worker who reportedly died while being detained by pro-Russia separatists say they are heartbroken that "justice will never be done."

Paul Urey, 45, died in captivity and showed signs of "possible unspeakable torture", it has been claimed.

He died in Ukraine in July after being branded a 'mercenary'.

His daughter, Courtney Coman, 17, said: "No one is going to take the blame. No one is going to point fingers.

"My dad died for no reason in a traumatic way and you can't understand what he was going through let alone his family and friends. So justice will never be done."


Courtney Coman speaking about the government's response to her father's capture


Courtney added: "I do wish there was more negotiation for the release of my father when he was alive. But there's nothing I can do now that will change that."

Sitting beside her sister, Chelsea Coman, 21, said: "It's been heartbreaking. That someone so close, you never got chance to say goodbye.

"He went over there helping people and he's died in that kind of way.

"It's not nice to see because you don't know what's true at the moment."

The two young women say they were not really aware of their dad's trip and had found out on the news.

Courtney says he spoke to her father via text just two days before he was captured.

After the dad of four's body was returned to the Ukrainian government, Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said it showed "signs of possible unspeakable torture".

He wrote on Twitter: “Russians have returned the body of a British humanitarian worker Paul Urie whom they captured in April and reported dead due to “illnesses” and “stress” in July. With signs of possible unspeakable torture.

“Detaining and torturing civilians is barbarism and a heinous war crime.

“I express my deepest condolences to relatives and close ones of Paul Urie. He was a brave man who dedicated himself to saving people. Ukraine will never forget him and his deeds.

“We will identify perpetrators of this crime and hold them to account. They won’t escape justice.”

Chelsea and Courtney described their father as a "big personality" and was "positive in mostly everything" he did.

The family are fundraising for £10,000 to repatriate his body and bring Mr Urey home.

Courtney said: "There has been a drastic amount of support since the GoFundMe went global.

"We earned about £3,000 in about 48 hours from people we don't know, sending lovely messages. It was really nice to see."

The family's fundraiser is nearly halfway to its target.


Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To know...