On trial for allegedly slitting his brother's throat: 'He was making me wear my mother's underwear and using me like his wife'

In the incident that occurred on March 27 at an apartment on Tunalı Street in the Erenler neighborhood, an argument broke out between Mert P. (34) and his older brother Murat P. (45) for an unknown reason. As the argument escalated into a fight, Murat P.'s throat was cut with a knife. 

Upon notification, police and medical teams were dispatched to the address. The medical teams, who arrived at the scene in a short time, took the injured person to the hospital by ambulance. Despite all interventions at the hospital, Murat P. could not be saved and lost his life. Police teams detained Mert P. and their mother, Hatice P., who was at home during the incident. Mert P., who was taken into custody, was arrested by the court following his statement and sent to prison. The mother, P., was released.

STARTED GAMBLING ON BETTING SITES

The trial of the detained defendant Mert P. has begun at the Kocaeli 4th High Criminal Court. The detained defendant Mert P., his lawyer, and his mother Hatice P. attended the hearing. Explaining that his mother had gone to work on the day of the incident and that he had stayed at home with his older brother, Mert P. said, "My brother left the house later, and I was left alone. In the evening, first my mother and then my brother Murat came home. My brother and I went to the market to get household necessities. After shopping, Murat bought 2 beers and 2 wines. After we got home, I started cooking. My brother, meanwhile, started gambling on betting sites. I made the food and took it to my mother. She ate her meal, and I was washing the dishes in the kitchen," he said.

THE KNIFE STRUCK HIS THROAT WHEN HE PULLED HIS HAND BACK QUICKLY

Mert P., who stated that his older brother Murat P. came to him while he was washing dishes and asked for money, said, "I told him I didn't have any money. Upon this, Murat went to my mother. Later, he went to the room to drink wine. After a while, he came back with a knife in his hand and harassed me from behind. I tried to stop him. He tried to attack me. I grabbed his wrist where he held the knife. At that moment, when Murat pulled his hand toward himself quickly, the knife struck his throat and he was wounded. My mother also witnessed what happened. I went to my mother, and because I was scared, we went into the room together. My brother followed us, then returned to the kitchen and fell there," he said.

'HE WOULD DRESS ME IN MY MOTHER'S UNDERWEAR'

Mert P. stated that his brother lost consciousness, that he intervened, and that he reported the incident to the 112 Emergency Call Centre. Mert P., who also recounted that his brother Murat P. had been sexually abusing him since the age of 13, said: "On the day of the incident, he tried to sexually assault me in the same way. He threatened to kill my mother. I saved my mother from him so many times. He threatened to kill my mother and my brother M.'s wife if I spoke about the rape incidents. I even used to stand guard and sleep in front of my mother's door so he wouldn't harm her. Murat would constantly dress me in my mother's underwear and sexually assault me that way."

'HE WOULD WASH ME WITH HOT WATER AFTER THE RELATIONSHIP'

Mert P. continued his defense as follows:

"As far as I learned at the prosecutor's office, Murat also sexually harassed my older brother M. Murat used to beat my mother a lot and tried to strangle her. He would beat my mother with a broom handle and rub her head against the wall. I love my mother very much. I never let my mother do any chores at home; I always did them myself. I never filed a complaint about what my brother Murat did to me. I only told my mother about the harassment my brother subjected me to two months before the incident. Other than that, no one knew what he did to me. When Murat sexually assaulted me, he would cover my mouth. My mother heard the sounds from time to time, but she couldn't come to us because she was afraid. A week before the incident, he performed a sexual act on me again. After the act, the deceased would wash me with hot water."

'HE WAS USING ME LIKE HIS WIFE'

Admitting that he had described some things differently in his initial statement, Mert P. said, "I told some things differently at the prosecutor's office because I did not yet know that my brother was dead. Although I said I was raped at 18, I was actually raped at 13. Furthermore, the claim that the knife was in my hand is also incorrect; the knife was in my brother's hand. He was very drunk on the day of the incident. During the investigation phase, I could not explain certain matters because I did not know I had killed my brother and I was afraid. My brother separated me from my girlfriend because he was using me like his wife. My brother Murat would constantly come at me with a knife. On the day of the incident, he attacked me with a knife as well. He pulled down my clothes, and I pushed him away with my hand. During this, he swung the knife at me; I grabbed his wrist, and as he quickly pulled his hand toward himself, the knife struck his throat," he stated.

'HE MADE ME SELL TISSUES'

Following the defendant's defense, the mother, H.P., was also given the floor. Explaining that her son Murat forced her to work, H.P. stated, "He would make me sell tissues and take that money from me. That day, I came home from work around 17:00. My son Mert was at home, but Murat had not arrived yet. Murat came home about an hour later. Later, my two sons went shopping and returned. Mert started cooking. When the food was ready, Mert brought it to me. I ate my meal, while Murat was drinking wine and gambling. I saw him put a pill into the wine in his hand. After a while, I went to my room because I felt sleepy, and I fell asleep."

'I AM NOT FILING A COMPLAINT AGAINST MY SON MERT'

Stating that Murat came into the room with a knife a short while later, the mother, identified as H., said, "Murat asked me for money for gambling. I told him I didn't have any. Upon that, he slammed the door and left. A while later, I heard Mert shouting, 'Brother, don't do it, stop, stay still.' I went to where the sounds were coming from because I was afraid Murat might assault Mert. Murat had a knife in his hand. Mert grabbed Murat's hand. When Murat pulled his hand away quickly, the knife in his hand struck his own throat. Mert applied pressure to his wound. I am not filing a complaint against my son Mert. My son Murat has done everything imaginable to us," she stated.

'I COULD NOT PROTECT MY SON MERT'

H.P., who stated that her son Murat also attempted to sexually assault her, said, "When I told Murat, 'I will disgrace you in the neighborhood,' he got scared. I wanted to file a complaint, but I was afraid because he threatened us with death. The deceased used to beat me and Mert. He would even beat Mert with an iron bar found in the house. I could not protect my son Mert. Even though I did not see it with my own eyes, I could hear from the sounds I heard that Murat was sexually abusing Mert, but we could not file a complaint out of fear. If we had complained, he would have returned the same way and killed us. Murat would occasionally say that he wanted to commit suicide and that he would go to his father. He constantly carried a knife," she said.

"WHEN WE WERE YOUNG, MURAT USED TO DRESS ME IN OUR MOTHER'S SKIRT"

M.P., the defendant's middle brother, stated that he had no firsthand knowledge of the night of the incident, and said: "When I was 14, my brother Murat sexually abused me. My mother was working as a dishwasher at a restaurant. The three of us siblings were home alone. My brother used to look at pornographic magazines. He would say to me, 'Come, let's do what they do in these.' Because I was young, I didn't understand. When we were little, Murat dressed me in our mother's skirt, then got behind me and started touching me. When it hurt, I ran away and cried. When I told him I would tell our mother, he didn't do anything. He attempted to do the same thing a few more times, but when I reacted he stopped — he was afraid when I said 'I'll tell Mum.' Because I resisted, he gave up on me and turned to our younger sibling. Our younger sibling was 5 years old at the time."

'IT DID NOT CROSS MY MIND'

Stating that she thought what was happening was a game because she was young, M.P. said, "Nothing bad crossed my mind. It did not occur to me that my brother could do such a thing to my sister. We would witness their arguments from time to time, but I did not witness any sexual assault incident."

The victim was subjecting me and my family members to violence. Last year, he had kicked me out of the house. The victim called me before; he was intoxicated and crying. He always used to call my brother Mert 'our father's legacy.' He cried saying, 'I couldn't protect our father's legacy,' and I thought he was upset because he couldn't get him a job. I couldn't have imagined the harassment incident," she said.

15 YEARS IN PRISON

The defendant was sentenced to 15 years in prison for intentional homicide, with reductions applied for provocation and good conduct.