Grieving family of little Şirin, who was strangled with a scarf, speaks out: 'I am not living, I died with my daughter'
The grieving family made a statement after the paper collector who murdered 6-year-old Şirin Elmas Hanilçi at the Feriköy Cemetery in Istanbul was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole plus 51 years in prison at the first hearing. Tearful mother Yeter Hanilçi said, "My daughter, I came face to face with the man who killed you today. I couldn't look at his face, I averted my eyes. My heart is burning, I am not living, I died with my daughter."
İHA
HE STRANGLED THE LITTLE GIRL TO DEATH WITH A SCARF
On October 31, 2024, at the Feriköy Cemetery in Istanbul's Şişli district, a verdict was reached in the trial of the defendant who sexually abused 6-year-old Şirin Elmas Hanilçi after stuffing a scarf into her mouth, and then strangled her to death with the scarf.
SENTENCED TO 51 YEARS IN PRISON
The court sentenced the defendant, Mustafa Örün, to life imprisonment without parole plus a total of 51 years in prison for the crimes of 'intentional killing to conceal or destroy evidence of a crime against a child and a woman', 'deprivation of liberty of a child for sexual purposes', and 'sexual abuse of a child'.
'WHEN I SAW MY DAUGHTER'S KILLER, I WENT BACK TO THAT DAY'
After the hearing, the grieving family made statements in front of the Istanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan.
Şirin's father, İbrahim Hanilçi, said, “Supreme justice has brought relief. That monster didn't just murder my daughter; he buried us along with her. I convey my endless thanks to the supreme justice, to the Istanbul police, to the bureau chiefs, and to the children's bureau chiefs. They caught my daughter's killer. Justice has dealt with him.
When I saw my daughter's killer, I went back to that day. It has been 65 days now that I have been away from my daughter, my child. We don't know how long we will live with her memory or when we will recover,” he said.
The grieving father broke down in tears during his statement.
'MY DAUGHTER, I CAME FACE TO FACE WITH THE MAN WHO KILLED YOU TODAY'
Unable to hold back her tears, the grieving mother Yeter Hanilçi said, “My daughter, I came face to face with the man who killed you today. I couldn't look at his face, I averted my eyes. But I turned and looked. He killed me too; that man is the murderer of our dreams, that man is a murderer of children.
My heart is burning, I am not living, I died with my daughter. He had no right to do such a thing,” she stated.