'I killed her on March 8th to make an example of her': Chilling defense from man who murdered his ex-wife on Women's Day

Aslı AĞIRDİL - 12punto.com.tr

On International Women's Day, March 8th, 33-year-old Tuğba Özel was murdered by her ex-husband at a bus stop while waiting for a bus to go to work in the morning. The second hearing of the murder case was held at the Batman High Criminal Court. The defendant, M.A., stated that he felt no remorse. The file was submitted to the prosecutor for their final opinion. The next hearing was adjourned until May 23rd.

HE EVEN WANTED TO BLOW UP HIS OWN HOUSE

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 8th, and what transpired during the hearing. Satılmış stated that after the incident, the ex-husband had set up a device in his own home, intending to blow up the apartment building as well. Noting that the defendant showed a disturbing lack of remorse during the second hearing, Satılmış stated the following:

“Tuğba Özel was murdered by her recently divorced husband on March 8, 2023, last year. The man asked his children what time their mother went to work, what time she caught the bus, etc. He learned the mother's schedule through the children, came to the front of the bus stop where she caught the bus in the morning, and emptied a magazine of bullets onto the woman, killing her. There was even a 15-year-old girl at the bus stop who had nothing to do with the matter. She was also injured as a result of this incident. The defendant had also set up a device in his house afterward. He had gone to a gas station the night before, bought gasoline in a canister, and carried them to the house. He had set up something like a booby trap. He was going to blow up the house, too. He was going to harm the entire apartment building after killing Tuğba. His defense is as follows: ‘I didn't have the heart to let innocent people die. That's why I went back and dismantled the device,’ he says. Then he was caught. He has been in custody ever since.

"Today was the second hearing. Not only did he show no signs of remorse, but he specifically says he is not sorry. ‘I killed her on March 8th to make an example of her; my soul found peace when I killed her,’ he says. He acts as if he is glad he killed her. The defendant says, ‘It’s as if I committed a crime and my family isn't coming to visit me in prison.’”

HE DOESN'T EVEN MENTION HIS DAUGHTER

"The defendant says he killed her on March 8th to make an example of her. The hearing was adjourned until May 23rd. The prosecutor will announce their final opinion. We are pushing for an aggravated life sentence because this was a premeditated murder committed with monstrous intent.

On one hand, he is trying to create an atmosphere as if it were not premeditated. In fact, in the previous hearing, he even slandered Tuğba; he said, ‘Tuğba saw me at the bus stop, she cursed at me, that's why I killed her.’

‘Then, when I was pressed on it, he said, ‘The people in prison told me if you say she cursed at you, you'll get a lighter sentence. That's why I lied. I did it because she wanted to separate me from my children. I only regret being separated from my son.’ He has a daughter and a son, for example, but his daughter is never mentioned; he only says he regrets being separated from his son.”