Sentences handed down to defendants who attacked referee Halil Umut Meler

The reasoned decision regarding the prison sentences ranging from 15 months and 12 days to 5 years and 15 days for the 4 defendants who attacked referee Halil Umut Meler at the end of the MKE Ankaragücü-Çaykur Rizespor match, including former Ankaragücü Club President Faruk Koca, has been announced.

According to the reasoned decision of the Ankara West 3rd Criminal Court of First Instance, on December 11, 2023, following the match between MKE Ankaragücü and Çaykur Rizespor, while the referees were gathered in the center of the field to leave under security escort, defendant Koca punched Meler, while defendants Şahin Yunus Şahin and Kenan Çelikkaya assaulted Meler, who was on the ground at the time, by kicking him multiple times in various parts of his body, and defendant Osman Erkam Can attempted to kick Meler but failed to make contact.

As a result of the trial, it was stated that defendant Koca was sentenced to 4 years, 7 months, and 12 days in prison for the crimes of "intentional injury resulting in bone fracture in a sports area due to the public duty performed by the person," "threat," and "violation of the Law on the Prevention of Violence and Disorder in Sports."

In the reasoned decision, it was noted that while a "good conduct reduction" was applied to Koca, no reduction for unjust provocation was granted, stating that "the fact that the referee may have made an incorrect decision during his duty cannot be accepted as a direct tort, and there was no unjust act or word directed at the defendant by the victim."

Recalling that defendant Çelikkaya was sentenced to 5 years and 15 days in prison for the crimes of "intentional injury resulting in bone fracture in a sports area due to the public duty performed by the person" and "violation of the Law on the Prevention of Violence and Disorder in Sports," the decision also noted that defendant Şahin was sentenced to 4 years, 2 months, and 12 days in prison for the same crimes.

It was emphasized that defendants Şahin and Çelikkaya also caused the incident to escalate with their actions, and considering the intensity of the intent and the severity of the danger, conviction decisions were made at the upper limit for each crime separately. It was stated that no reduction for unjust provocation was applied to the sentences given to these defendants either.

Defendant Can was sentenced to 1 year, 3 months, and 12 days in prison for the crimes of "attempted intentional injury resulting in bone fracture in a sports area due to the public duty performed by the person" and "violation of the Law on the Prevention of Violence and Disorder in Sports."

The decision stated that it was decided "for all defendants to be banned from serving in the management and supervisory bodies of sports clubs, federations, and legal entities where sports activities are carried out, and for security measures to be applied in the form of a ban on attending sports competitions."