Prison sentence for former MHP mayor in Bilge Sitesi case
In the case regarding the Bilge Sitesi, which became a grave for 105 people in Osmaniye during the February 6, 2023, Kahramanmaraş-centered earthquakes, 6 defendants, including former MHP Osmaniye Mayor Kadir Kara, were sentenced to prison.
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A verdict has been reached in the Bilge Sitesi case, where 105 people lost their lives in Osmaniye, a city affected by the earthquakes that occurred on February 6, 2023. In the trial involving 8 defendants, the court sentenced 6 of them to prison, including Kadir Kara, the former MHP Mayor of Osmaniye who served as the Director of Zoning in 1995 when the building was constructed.
A total of 8 defendants, both in custody and released pending trial, as well as the lawyers for the plaintiffs and defendants, attended the hearing.
Announcing its verdict after the defense statements, the court panel sentenced the defendant released pending trial, former Osmaniye Mayor Kadir Kara, to 21 years in prison.
While Mustafa N. and Hülya İ. were acquitted, Mustafa İpek and Faruk Pilge were sentenced to 8 years each, and Ayşe Sevinç Argun along with defendants in custody Ayhan Gedik and Haluk Koç were each sentenced to 21 years in prison.
Koray Atmaca, one of the lawyers for the plaintiffs, stated that the court sentenced former MHP Osmaniye Mayor Kadir Kara, Sevinç Ayşe Argun, Ayhan Gedik, and Haluk Koç to 21 years in prison for the crime of "causing the death and injury of more than one person through conscious negligence," and contractors Mustafa İpek and Faruk Pilge to 8 years in prison for the crime of "causing death and injury through negligence."
Stating that an arrest warrant was issued for the defendants, lawyer Atmaca said, "The sentences will not bring back those we lost, but they have provided some relief to the hearts of those who have been fighting for justice and who lost their loved ones in the earthquake. We believe that as of today, a note has been made in history."