Girl allegedly harassed by murdered imam speaks out: 'Let's cover it up'

The incident occurred on November 24 at the Fet Ahmet Mosque in the Sinanpaşa neighborhood of the Yüreğir district. Allegedly, mosque imam Tarık Karadağ was stabbed by a youth named M.A. (16) and lost his life in the hospital where he was taken.

The youth later surrendered to the police, while the imam's body was taken to the Forensic Medicine Institute morgue for an autopsy. The imam's body was claimed by his relatives after the autopsy the day after the incident and was laid to rest yesterday at the Buruk Cemetery.

Following his procedures at the police station, the youth, M.A., was referred to the courthouse and arrested by the court he was brought before.

"I WOULD NEVER EXPECT IT FROM AN IMAM"

F.A. (14), who was allegedly harassed by the imam, recounted her experiences. F.A. said, "I was studying to be a hafiz, I knew his son from school. He was constantly coming and going to the hafiz course even though it was forbidden in the girls' dormitory. He constantly saw me while holding ceremonies there, and over time he started showing a special interest in me and approaching me. I felt this interest, but I always told myself it was fatherly affection. He is older than my father, an imam, I would never expect it. I didn't think of it, most people say he is good, so I said he was good too."

Explaining that he took her out on the eve of Eid al-Adha under the pretext of buying clothes, F.A. stated, "While in his car, he held my hand and kissed it. He insisted on taking me out, saying he wanted to buy clothes. My family thought there would be others with him, so they allowed me to go. I went to him, and when I saw he was alone in the car, I wanted to sit in the back. He insisted I sit in the front. I moved to the front, and during the journey, he held my hand; even though I pulled it away, he continued. Even though I made it clear I was uncomfortable, he continued and kissed my hand. He said he wanted to hug me, and said things he shouldn't have said, like 'sleep on my shoulder.' He said things like 'Let's leave here, do you have your ID with you?' Things that should not be said to an underage girl."

"LET'S COVER IT UP"

F.A. added, "He was sending messages, I wasn't replying, and he kept sending them and calling repeatedly. I explained the situation to my teacher at the hafiz course. My teacher then spoke with the wife of the local mufti. The mufti and his wife told me to stay quiet, they said absolutely do not tell anyone, let's cover the incident up. They said I must have misunderstood, that he wouldn't do such a thing. There was nothing to misunderstand, everything was obvious. We submitted petitions to both the Diyanet and the prosecutor's office. Our petition was rejected, and a decision of non-prosecution was given. I couldn't just pull out a camera and record while the incident was happening. This case was closed just because I wasn't raped that day."

"WE APPLIED EVERYWHERE BUT WERE REJECTED"

Continuing her words in tears, F.A. said, "We tried very hard, we gave statements to the prosecutor's office. We applied everywhere but were always rejected. You call my older brother a substance addict, but he didn't even smoke cigarettes. We are all devout people who pray. We tried very hard, we went to the Diyanet, the prosecutor's office, everywhere. But we got no response whatsoever. My brother wanted to talk to him so that what I experienced today wouldn't be experienced by other girls tomorrow. I know it wasn't just done to me. Please, if it happened to another girl, she shouldn't stay quiet. We really need the support of others. My brother didn't want to kill anyone; when he faced a reaction at that moment, he had to do it to protect himself."

"THE PROVINCIAL AND DISTRICT MUFTI IGNORED ME"

The father, Fatih A., said, "The class teacher at the Quran course explained the situation to me. I filed a criminal complaint with the prosecutor's office. I met face-to-face with the district and provincial mufti about this issue. I requested that the imam be reassigned, but they ignored me. The petition I submitted to the prosecutor's office came back to me as a decision of non-prosecution. I submitted another petition, and a decision of non-prosecution was given for that one too. While I was discussing this matter with my wife, my son overheard our conversation. And then what happened, happened. My son was someone who wouldn't hurt a fly. He was a kid who kept to himself. On social media, they write that he is a marijuana user, a heroin addict. He was a kid who didn't even smoke cigarettes, on what basis are you saying this? As a father, I feel devastated."