7 people had lost their lives: 2 arrests, 4 releases in Dilovası fire trial

The fourth hearing of the trial concerning the cosmetic factory fire in the Dilovası district of Kocaeli, which resulted in the deaths of 7 people, has concluded. During the hearing held at the courtroom in the Kandıra Penal Execution Institution Campus, the Gebze 7th High Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for two municipal officials.

The court panel ordered the arrest of Acting Municipal Police Chief Nizamettin Balcı and former Acting Municipal Police Chief Cengiz Taşdemir. Former Building Control Manager Cihan Sorgucu, former Acting Building Control Manager Selim San, the then-Director of Zoning and Urbanization and Deputy Mayor Hüseyin Öztürk, and Building Control Manager Muammer Telli were released under judicial control measures and a travel ban.

The panel decided to maintain the current status of the other defendants and adjourned the hearing to November 3. A total of 23 defendants, including company officials and municipal employees, are being tried in the case, with 10 currently in custody and 1 fugitive.

DEFENDANTS PRESENTED THEIR DEFENSE

In his defense during the hearing, former Acting Municipal Police Chief Cengiz Taşdemir stated that he served between 2019 and 2024, arguing that he had no knowledge of the license issued to the building where the fire occurred and that he was not at fault.

Acting Municipal Police Chief Nizamettin Balcı stated that the license for the workplace was issued shortly before he took office. Balcı explained that during an inspection he conducted a few weeks before the fire, he asked about the business's license, was informed by the licensing department that it had a license, and drew up a report after the business official declared that they would be moving shortly.

Municipal police officer D.K., who was heard as a witness, also stated that Balcı had called him to ask about the business's licensing status and that he had informed him that there was a license based on his check through the system. Following the defenses, the relatives of those who lost their lives in the fire also stated that they were filing complaints against the defendants.

In the fire that broke out on November 8, 2025, at the cosmetic factory in the Mimar Sinan neighborhood of Dilovası, Tuğba Taşdemir, Nisanur Taşdemir, Cansu Esetoğlu, Hanım Gülek, Esma Gikan, and Şengül Yılmaz lost their lives, and 7 people were injured. One of the injured, Tuncay Yıldız, also passed away on November 15 at the hospital where he was receiving treatment.

The indictment requests 7 life sentences for some company officials on charges of "homicide with probable intent," while prison sentences are also being sought for officials of the firm providing occupational health and safety services, building owners, and municipal employees on various other charges.