A group of 17 British tourists holidaying on the island of Crete were freed by a court in Iraklion yesterday after spending 24 hours in detention for wandering around the popular tourist resort of Malia wearing nun costumes and allegedly flashing their backsides at residents.

The British men, all residents of the southwestern city of Bristol and aged between 18 and 60, had faced charges of causing a scandal through provocative acts. They walked free after no witnesses turned up in court to testify that their behavior had been offensive. The men appeared in court in the same clothes they were wearing when arrested, according to police who said they had been “dressed like nuns, carrying crosses, but wearing thongs under their skirts and showing people their bottoms.”

Malia has become notorious for the antics of alcohol-fueled Britons visiting for vacations or stag weekends.