Killed for money: The hitman who murdered teacher Mahir names his accomplices

On June 26, Fevzi Çakmak Anatolian High School Assistant Principal Mahir Çoğaç was subjected to an armed attack while fastening his seatbelt in his car after leaving his home on Fatih Street in the Çayırova district of Kocaeli. The suspect approached the car and shot Çoğaç in the head with a handgun. Çoğaç, left covered in blood, lost his life, while the suspect fled the scene on foot.

The trail of the murder led to another killing committed in Adana in 2020. It was reported that Bedirhan Bayğara (36), the leader of an organized crime group known as the "Bayğaralar" four years ago, had lost his life in an armed attack while sitting at a cafe with his girlfriend, and that the person alleged to have shot Bayğara was Y. Çoğaç, the brother of Mahir Çoğaç. It was alleged that the murder of Mahir Çoğaç was linked to the killing of Bedirhan Bayğara and that the incident was carried out as a blood feud. It was claimed that Y. Çoğaç, nicknamed "The Ghost," could not be captured after that incident. It is alleged that the Bayğaralar, seeking revenge, set a trap for teacher Mahir Çoğaç because they could not reach anyone else from the Çoğaç family.

THE KILLER WAS CAUGHT

Within the scope of the extensive investigation launched into the incident, detectives from the Kocaeli Police Department's Public Security Branch Murder Bureau pursued the killer and the suspects thought to be involved in the incident. It was determined that the suspect who shot Çoğaç was 17-year-old D.G. It was also learned that B.Y. acted as a lookout. The murder hitman D.G. and B.Y. were caught in an operation in Istanbul on the same day by teams from the Public Security Branch Murder Bureau. While 8 of the 11 suspects detained in connection with the incident were arrested, L.A., A.H., and E.B. were released under judicial control conditions.

'THEY ASKED IF WE COULD DO A KILLING JOB'

Hitman D.G.'s testimony to the prosecutor's office has been revealed. Stating that he met Y.A. and D.S. through an individual named B.Y. and that they became friends, D.G. said, "They hadn't asked me for anything until now. On the night connecting June 23 to June 24, Y.A. and D.S. called B.Y., with whom I was living, and asked if we could do a killing job. We said we could. Upon this, they told us to wait for news and hung up the phone."

'THEY SAID THEY WOULD TAKE US TO GREECE AND GIVE US MONEY, A CAR, AND A HOUSE'

Stating that he was contacted through B.Y.'s phone on Monday, June 24, D.G. said, "They told us we would kill a person with a gun, and in return, they would take us to Greece and give us money, a car, and a house. Since our relationship with our family was already bad, B.Y. and I had moved into a bachelor apartment. We were living there together. We accepted this offer. I had never been involved in such an incident before. Upon being told that a package would be delivered to him, B.Y. left the house and went somewhere, but I don't know where he went. When he returned home, he had a phone, 2 handguns, and some money with him. They started communicating with us through the phone B.Y. had. They told us to go to a hotel in Kartal and stay there until we were notified. We went to the hotel by our own means. After arriving at the hotel, we never left. Only one day before the incident, Y.A. called us and said he had sent a taxi to the front of the hotel, that we should get into this taxi, and go to the place where we would carry out the incident to learn it thoroughly. We got into the taxi he had sent to the front of the hotel and went to the scene. After conducting reconnaissance, we returned to the hotel and did not sleep at all that night," he said.

'I FIRED ONE SHOT THROUGH THE DRIVER'S WINDOW AND STARTED RUNNING'

Explaining that on the day of the incident, D.S. and Y.A. contacted them and stated that the time had come and they had to do what they were told, D.G. emphasized that they got into the taxi called to the hotel and went to the location sent to them. Stating that they started waiting at the address with B.Y., D.G. said, "B.Y. was a bit scared. For this reason, he said he would wait for me a little further ahead and would watch my back if there was a problem. We agreed with B.Y. that I would start running after I shot when the person got into his car, and that he would continue to run with me, and we started waiting. After I saw the person leave the house, I waited for him to get into the car, and as soon as he got in, I fired one shot through the closed driver's window and started running. I didn't know at that moment if he was dead or not. I don't know the person either. While I was running, a few people followed me and started chasing me, but B.Y. and I escaped these people by running. After making sure no one was following us, we hid the weapons we had at the base of a wall and continued on our way. We found a secluded truck garage and hid behind a truck there. We called D.S. and Y.A. with the phone B.Y. had and said we had finished the job. At their request, we sent our location and started waiting. The taxi was already waiting to pick us up; it came quickly. I hadn't seen the taxi driver before. He picked us up without asking anything," he stated.

'EVERYONE KNEW THEIR JOB, THEY JUST DID THEIR JOB'

D.G. stated that after the murder, they got into the taxi and set off towards Pendik, and during this time, they picked up another person they did not know. Stating that this person described a house in Pendik and took them to that address, D.G. said, "We couldn't open the door at the house, and meanwhile, Y.A. and D.S. called us and said they had found another house, that we would go to that house, that they would send us a taxi, and that we should get into that taxi. When we got out in front of the door, there were 2 taxis waiting, one in front of the other. We hadn't been told which taxi to get into. We got into the taxi standing in the back, and we sent the location sent to us to the taxi driver. B.Y. and I got into that taxi, and the other person left when he couldn't open the door. The taxi driver took us to the specified location, and there we met with the person whose name I later learned was E. E. took us and brought us to the residence where we were caught and settled us there. We didn't talk about anything either in the taxi or with E. Everyone knew what their job was and just did their job. After arriving at the house, I went straight to sleep, and when I woke up, I saw the police at the door. I am very sorry for what I did. D.S. and Y.A. wanted us to do this. They are already fugitives in Greece and are constantly together. During our stay at the hotel, I spoke with these people many times on the phone. For this reason, I am sure of these individuals' identity information," he said.

News Source: 12punto