He murdered his ex-wife on Women's Day: 'He started to express regret only after realizing he wouldn't get a sentence reduction'

Aslı AĞIRDİL - 12punto.com.tr

On International Women's Day, March 8, 33-year-old Tuğba Özel was murdered at a bus stop by her ex-husband while she was waiting for a bus to go to work in the morning. The second hearing of the murder case was held on March 14 at the Batman High Criminal Court. The defendant, M. A., had made statements such as that he was not remorseful and that if he were released, he would dig up her grave.

The third hearing of the case was held on May 23. Based on the perpetrator's statement that "I deliberately chose March 8 to serve as a lesson to everyone," the prosecutor submitted an opinion that the defendant should be punished for the crime of premeditated intentional murder against a woman, that no sentence reduction should be applied given his statements indicating a lack of remorse, and that the defendant's claim of unjust provocation should be rejected. The final hearing will be held on July 9.

"HE WILL NOT BENEFIT FROM A REDUCTION"

Nurbanu Satılmış, a lawyer for the Association of Children and Women First, spoke to 12punto about the developments in the case of Tuğba Özel, who was murdered on March 8, and what happened during the hearing.

Satılmış stated that the defendant had been trying to receive an unjust provocation reduction, but that the prosecutor had submitted an opinion stating that there was no basis for such a reduction and that he should be sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for the crime of premeditated intentional murder against a spouse.

"The prosecutor submitted an opinion. The prosecutor states that because the defendant said he deliberately chose March 8, this was a premeditated murder. At the same time, because he stated in his later testimonies that he was not remorseful and that his soul was at peace, the prosecutor expressed that he should not benefit from any sentence reduction. Although the defendant tried to receive an unjust provocation reduction, the prosecutor submitted an opinion that he was not worthy of such a reduction and that he should be sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for the crime of premeditated intentional murder against a spouse and against a woman."

HE CHANGED HIS ATTITUDE WHEN HE COULD NOT GET A REDUCTION

Stating that the defendant tried to make it appear as if there was unjust provocation by fabricating false statements despite the prosecutor's opinion, Satılmış said:

"The defendant is trying to undermine the premeditation aspect with his statements. He is trying to create an atmosphere as if there was no premeditation so that he does not receive a life sentence or aggravated life sentence, but rather a fixed-term sentence. When the defendant realized in the courtroom that he would not be able to get a sentence reduction, he began trying to get an unjust provocation reduction, whereas until today he had stated he felt no remorse.

The defendant said, 'I apologize to my family, Tuğba's family, and my children.' He changed his attitude and behavior by expressing regret only after realizing he would not be able to get a reduction."

DECISION ON JULY 9

"The final hearing is on July 9. The court will render its decision. We requested that the verdict be in line with the prosecutor's opinion. I hope it will be, because the court also saw the defendant's demeanor and actions. The defendant's lawyer will also file an objection to the opinion, so they requested time."