Teacher shot by 'Bayğaralar Gang': Minister Yerlikaya had announced the gang was dismantled

The incident occurred on Wednesday, June 26, around 09:00, on Fatih Street in the Çayırova neighborhood. Fevzi Çakmak Anatolian High School Assistant Principal Mahir Çoğaç was subjected to an armed attack while he was fastening his seatbelt in his car after leaving his home.

The suspect approached the car and shot Çoğaç in the head with a handgun. Çoğaç, left in a pool of blood, lost his life, while the suspect fled the scene on foot.

THE MURDER LINKED TO THE CRIMINAL ORGANIZATION CALLED BAYĞARALAR

The trail of the murder led to another killing committed in Adana in 2020. It was reported that Bedirhan Bayğara (36), the leader of the organized crime group known as the "Bayğaralar" four years ago, was killed in an armed attack while sitting with his girlfriend at a cafe, 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 caught after the incident. It is alleged that the Bayğaralar, wanting revenge, set an ambush for teacher Mahir Çoğaç because they could not reach anyone else from the Çoğaç family.

KILLER 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.

Meanwhile, it was learned that B.Y. acted as a lookout. The hitman of the murder, 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. Of the 11 suspects detained in connection with the incident, 8 were arrested, while L.A., A.H., and E.B. were released under judicial control conditions.

"THEY ASKED IF WE COULD DO A KILLING JOB"

The statement given by the hitman D.G. to the prosecutor's office has emerged. Stating in his testimony that he met Y.A. and D.S. through a person 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 live, 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 GIVE MONEY, A CAR, AND A HOUSE"

Explaining 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, I had moved into a bachelor apartment with B.Y. 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 that 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 we went to the hotel, we never left it.

Only one day before the day of 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, go to the place where we would carry out the incident, and learn it well. We got into the taxi he had sent to the front of the hotel and went to the scene. After doing reconnaissance, we returned to the hotel and didn't sleep at all that night," he said.

"I FIRED ONE SHOT THROUGH THE DRIVER'S WINDOW"

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 with B.Y. at the address, D.G. said, "B.Y. was a little scared. For this reason, he said he would wait for me a little further ahead and would watch over me if there was a problem.

We agreed with B.Y. that when the person got into his car, I would shoot and start running, and he would continue running 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 I escaped these people by running with B.Y. 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 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 didn't 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 off in front of the door, 2 taxis were 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 both got into that taxi; 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. asked us to do this incident. They are already fugitives in Greece and are constantly together. During the time we stayed at the hotel, I spoke with these people on the phone many times. For this reason, I am sure of the identity information of these individuals," he said.

YERLIKAYA HAD ANNOUNCED IT IN OCTOBER LAST YEAR

Interior Minister Yerlikaya made a statement on his social media account last October and announced that the Bayğaralar organized crime group had been dismantled in an operation carried out simultaneously in 6 provinces.

Minister Yerlikaya had made a post on his social media account regarding the fight against organized crime and had used the following expressions.

Accordingly; in the 'Kafes' operation carried out simultaneously in 6 provinces centered in Adana by the Adana Police Department KOM Branch Directorate under the coordination of the General Directorate of Security's Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime (KOM) Department, 55 suspects were caught and the 'Bayğaralar' organized crime group, led by Ramazan Bayğara, was dismantled. In the simultaneous raids, 3 infantry rifles, 2 light machine guns, 29 handguns, and 7 shotguns were seized. Judicial proceedings were initiated against the suspects on the grounds that they committed 7 murders and 13 armed assaults; they also established so-called courts regarding debt and credit issues and provided financial benefits, shot up many workplaces for the purpose of intimidation and extortion, forcibly seized business people and their workplaces, and were involved in drug trafficking and fraud activities.

Congratulating the police who carried out the operations, Yerlikaya said, "I would like to state once again that we will not give any leeway to those who are arrogant in crime, those who disturb the peace of our people, organized crime groups, and gangs. No matter how large they are, we will dismantle organized crime groups and deliver them to justice."