Talk about pirate booty.

In a dramatic shift of fortunes on the high seas, 34 Egyptian fishermen kidnapped by Somali pirates four months ago overpowered their captors and were sailing home Saturday with eight marauders locked up in a room and ready to be delivered to police.

Usually it's the pirates who get away with bragging rights and ransoms, but the fishermen, whose two vessels had been seized in the notorious waters around the Gulf of Aden, were steaming toward the Egyptian coast with an impressive haul.

Egyptian Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmed Rizq said in a statement that the crews from both ships "have safely entered the Red Sea waters on their way home with all 34 fishermen on board along with eight Somali pirates."

The Al Jazeera network reported that the fishermen "have declined to be airlifted as they have said it will be fitting if they can sail home."

On Friday, the fishermen attacked the pirates with machetes, tools and their captors' guns. There were conflicting accounts on how many pirates were killed, although news reports said the bodies of seven suspected pirates have washed up on Somali beaches. There were also reports that several turncoat pirates may have helped in the escape.

One of the ship's owners, Hassan Khalil, whose two sons were among the captives, traveled to Sudan to negotiate a ransom after attempts by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry failed to free the fishermen. The Egyptian media reported that the pirates were seeking $800,000 to release the vessels and $200,000 to free Khalil's sons. Other accounts suggested the bandits were seeking $1.5 million and that negotiations had broken down Wednesday.

Hamad Khalil, one of Khalil's sons, told the Egyptian daily Al Masry Al Youm in a phone call that the fishermen were treated harshly during their confinement.

"We almost lost any hope of being released, especially after we heard that the money raised by our families and other donors wasn't enough to pay the pirates. Many fishermen were in a horrible mental state," he said. "Our dad's decision to come and negotiate the ransom himself brought us back to life."

The shipping lanes and the fishing waters in the Gulf of Aden off Yemen and Somalia have become treacherous in recent years with well-armed pirates in small, swift boats. In April, U.S. Navy snipers killed three pirates and freed the American captain of a cargo ship in the waters off East Africa.

jeffrey.fleishman@latimes.com