Tried for abusing a 13-year-old child, travel ban lifted 'because he was going on hajj'!

Sinem Nazlı Demir - 12punto.com.tr

When Y.E. was 13 years old, she enrolled in a theatre course in Antalya in 2011 and, while continuing her training as the only child performer, she began to be invited to tours and solo rehearsals by Ümit Ziya Altı, one of the course's teachers. At first, Y.E. interpreted the interest her teacher showed in her within the framework of a teacher-student relationship, but after a while the nature and extent of the communication Ümit Z.A. maintained with Y.E. changed. The teacher began dropping Y.E. off at her home after rehearsals, writing her letters, and later buying her gifts and writing letters to a 13-year-old child. He manipulated Y.E. into getting into his car and began abusing the 13-year-old child.

'HE SEXUALLY ABUSED ME EVERY WEEK'

Y.E. described those days in her first statement to the prosecutor as follows:

"Ümit Z.A. began sending me emails showing his interest in me from February 2011. He then opened a shared email account and began sending me letters through the drafts folder. He bought me a bonsai tree and said, 'Bonsai trees live a long time, our love will be the same — keep it until you turn 18.' After theatre sessions ended, Ümit Z.A. began driving me home. Before dropping me off, he would drive around and then park the car in secluded areas. He then began kissing me and touching me. He touched my genitals. He began doing these things from March 2011. I was too ashamed to tell anyone what Ümit Z.A. was doing to me. There was a theatre rehearsal once a week and after every rehearsal he would repeat his sexual acts. The theatre sessions lasted approximately 9 months and he sexually abused me in this way almost every week. On 22 July 2011, he took me to an office. He began touching my body. I was scared and I cried. He tried to calm me down by saying he would try something. And he carried out his act — he subjected me to aggravated sexual abuse. When my pain became very intense and I kept crying, he stopped. A few days later he gave me a pregnancy test and asked me to take it. He told me that having sexual intercourse with me was a very serious crime, that if I told anyone about this he would go to prison and could be killed in prison, and that we were both guilty in this matter. He repeated these sexual acts many times until February 2012. When my father asked me 'did he touch you,' I couldn't say anything because I thought he would become a murderer and go to prison. Ümit Z.A. tried to draw me emotionally closer to him by saying that we were in love with each other, that my 13-year-old body actually housed a different soul, that I was mature for my age, and that people would not understand this."

DECIDED TO FILE A COMPLAINT IN 2024

While Y.E. was writing in the notebook Ümit Z.A. had given her, her mother, who grew suspicious, decided to read the notebook and, after seeing what was in it, called Ümit Z.A. — his mother, who answered the phone, told Y.E.'s mother "you should have looked after your daughter back then" and hung up. After this incident, Ümit Z.A. deleted all correspondence in the shared email account and closed the theatre office at the request of Y.E.'s father.

Y.E. tried to forget what she had experienced, moved to another city, and began receiving psychological treatment. During this period, Y.E. learned that Ümit Z.A., who had continued his career as a writer and his seminars, would be attending a book fair to be held in her city in 2017, and she went to the fair and confronted Ümit Z.A. Ümit Z.A. told her, "I was waiting for you too — what we experienced was love and I still love you." After these events, Y.E. was unable to file a complaint because she had not told her family, but she told Ümit Z.A. that she would one day file a complaint. Concluding that her psychological state would not improve unless she filed a complaint, and finding the courage to tell her family about the situation, 7 years later, in September 2024, she went to the Antalya Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, filed a complaint, and requested that Ümit Z.A. be arrested.

'BECAUSE I'M A WRITER, MANY PEOPLE ADMIRE ME'

Ümit Z.A., who gave a statement following the complaint, claimed in his defence to law enforcement officers: "On days when theatre plays were on, after the theatre ended I would drop off some of those involved in the theatre at their homes, as long as it was on my way. Y.E. may have been among those I dropped off at their homes. I was not in a relationship with her. Because I am a writer, many people admire me. This love was unrequited. We did not become close in any way." He alleged that his reputation was being undermined and did not accept the charges.

Ümit Z.A.'s lawyer, in his defence, stated: "The victim, as she grew older, had boyfriends and shared photographs of herself with these boyfriends on social media. When these photographs are examined, it can be seen that they are inappropriate photographs and that there are alcoholic beverages on her table. The victim is experiencing a platonic love." He requested the acquittal of Ümit Z.A.

FORENSIC MEDICINE SAID SHE WAS 'PSYCHOLOGICALLY AFFECTED'

During this process, Y.E.'s psychiatrist also wrote a report for submission to the court regarding Y.E.'s psychological state and the effects of the abuse she experienced. A report prepared by the Department of Forensic Medicine at Akdeniz University Faculty of Medicine also stated that Y.E. showed signs of post-traumatic stress disorder and that it was the medical opinion that she may have been psychologically affected by the "Acts of Sexual Abuse of a Child" she was allegedly subjected to between 2011 and 2012.

The report further noted that, although the suspect's defence included a denial of the charges against him, since the victim was under the age of 15 at the time of the offence, even if her consent were accepted, she was not legally capable of giving informed consent due to her age, and that the sexual abuse she experienced had damaged her mental health.

TWO SEPARATE CHARGES FILED AGAINST THE ABUSER

The indictment prepared by the Public Prosecutor in relation to the case stated: "Crediting the victim's sincere statements, it is conveyed that the suspect carried out acts of sexual abuse against the victim on multiple occasions at different times between 2011 and 2012, by touching, kissing, and penetrating the child," and requested that a public prosecution be initiated and that the suspect be punished for committing these crimes. Charges were filed against Ümit Z.A. for "Aggravated Sexual Abuse of a Child, and Deprivation of Liberty by Use of Force, Threat, or Deception."

'HE ATTEMPTED AGGRAVATED ABUSE'

Yağmur Burçin Sayın, the lawyer for the case file and for the Önce Çocuklar ve Kadınlar Derneği (Children and Women First Association), who spoke to 12Punto, described the abuse Y.E. was subjected to from the time the theatre course began:

"The individual named Ümit Z.A., some time after the theatre course began, started buying Y.E. gifts and flowers. From the end of 2011, he took her to the cliffs in Antalya, kissed her — particularly in the car — and made her hold his genitals. On the second occasion he took her to an empty house and attempted aggravated sexual abuse. He opened an email address in Y.E.'s name and began communicating through drafts, so as not to leave a trace. One day Y.E.'s mother entered her room, found the notebook, and called her father. The family met with Ümit Z.A. without Y.E. present. Later the family also spoke with Y.E. After a while they moved to another city. Y.E. was unable to tell those around her what she had experienced and continued with her life. When university started, she logged into the email address from years before, read the emails, remembered what she had been through, and began receiving treatment. In September 2024 she filed a complaint, and the investigation began when the forensic medicine report stated that psychological effects consistent with sexual abuse were observed."

THE BAN WAS LIFTED BECAUSE HE SAID 'I'M GOING ON UMRAH'

Sayın, noting that the first hearing was held in April, said that the defendant Ümit Z.A. claimed he had been slandered by Y.E.

The hearing prosecutor requested that the defendant be remanded in custody, and that if this request was not granted, judicial supervision measures be applied. A measure was also requested under Law No. 6284 prohibiting the defendant from approaching or contacting the victim. The court panel decided that the defendant would be tried without arrest and did not apply any judicial supervision measure.

Sayın, noting that judicial supervision and a travel ban had been imposed on Ümit Z.A. following his first statement, highlighted how this ban was lifted before the first hearing:

"After the ban was imposed, he bought a ticket claiming he was going on umrah and submitted a petition to the Magistrate's Criminal Court. The ban and the judicial supervision condition were then lifted."

Sayın, explaining that abusers target children and rob them of their childhoods, and that they deceive children by invoking religion, said they were waiting for public support:

"They try to exploit children's — especially girls' — emotions, and in doing so they use their bodies. They deceive very young children into believing they are trustworthy people by invoking religious and Sufi beliefs. Paedophilia is a disease, and the presence of such people among us increases the potential for crime. These abusers, these harassers, are walking among us. We are all at risk, like Y.E. Our voices must be heard so that measures and precautions can be taken. What my client experienced robbed her of her childhood. But as I listened to her life story and watched her, I began to feel proud of her achievements. We are Y.E.'s supporters and we stand behind her to the end of this case. Our next hearing has been postponed to 10 June. We are waiting for public support."

'MY NOSE BLED WHILE I WAS GIVING MY STATEMENT'

Y.E., speaking to 12Punto, responded to criticism directed at her for filing a complaint years later. Saying that the crime of abuse is a difficult crime to speak about, Y.E. also drew attention to why perpetrators of this crime deliberately target children who can be drawn into silence:

"In the process of deciding to speak out, I learned that so many of my friends and relatives had been abused as children and had been unable to speak about it… Seeing how widespread the crime of abuse is — especially given how much evidence I have — I wanted to do something for others too. There are many answers to the question 'Why did she stay silent for so long?' We don't want our families to know. Nobody wants their father to become a murderer. These are not easy topics to talk about. It affects all of your human relationships. There is a reason why the statute of limitations for this crime is 25 years — because it is very difficult for victims to speak out. This crime opens such a deep wound in a person that it becomes impossible to go on with life. Its effects confront us everywhere. When most people see this news, they think 'Did it only occur to her 13 years later? She must have something to gain from this case.' Nobody can have anything to gain from a case like this. Nobody puts themselves under such stress just to make a false confession. My nose bled while I was giving my statement. You forget how to love yourself, you become unable to form relationships with the people you love. Paedophilia is exactly that kind of thing — these criminals feed on secrecy and deliberately choose children who cannot speak out. They specifically target children who are disabled or going through a vulnerable period — this is not a coincidence. Also, this person deceived me with Sufi stories. It is no coincidence that these people are affiliated with religious communities. He brainwashed me too. He goes on hajj because they know the system very well. They use religion as a cover for themselves."

Y.E., saying that during the process of filing her complaint she learned that many people around her had also been subjected to the same or similar rights violations, conveyed that deciding to speak out was a powerful but difficult step, and called on the public for support ahead of the next hearing:

"I invite everyone to speak out. If you file a complaint, a great deal changes. If one person speaks out, thousands of people find the courage to speak. Even people I have known for years have begun to confess their own experiences after my case. One person filing a complaint can encourage many others. I invite everyone to speak out, because even having the other person questioned brings relief. I also want to highlight one point: another woman who was harassed by Ümit Z.A. and whom we do not know will also be giving a statement at our next hearing. I invite the public to support our hearing on 10 June."

News Source: Hazal Güven