Minister of Justice Akın Gürlek announced that four separate cold case murder files from previous years in Konya, Kahramanmaraş, Mersin, and Hatay are being re-examined. According to the information provided by Gürlek, a total of 26 suspects have been detained and 6 suspects have been arrested in the ongoing investigations.
Making a statement on his social media account, Gürlek stated that the Chief Public Prosecutor's Offices and law enforcement units are working together under the coordination of the Department for Investigation of Cold Case Crimes within the Ministry. Gürlek reported that evidence is being re-evaluated using methods such as forensic examination, DNA analysis, communication records, HTS data, and witness statements.
Regarding the work carried out to date, Gürlek used the phrase, "We have resolved 75 murders in 68 files, removing them from the cold case status." Minister Gürlek said, "No matter how many years pass, we do not give up on murders that have left deep wounds in the conscience of society."
NEW PROCESS IN FOUR FILES
In the file regarding the death of Ömer Faruk Akıllı, who was found shot in the head with a firearm on the Konya-Ankara highway in 2005, it was announced that findings were obtained suggesting he may have been abducted following a dispute at the hotel where he worked in Bursa. Following the re-examination of witness statements and communication records, 7 suspects were detained in simultaneous operations. 5 of the suspects were arrested for premeditated murder, and judicial control measures were imposed on 2.
In the file regarding a newborn baby whose lifeless body was found in an empty lot in the Onikişubat district of Kahramanmaraş in 2010, hospital records and witness accounts were re-evaluated. 2 suspects were apprehended after identifying individuals who had pregnancy records but no birth records. It was reported that one of the suspects confessed to leaving the baby in the empty lot after birth; one of the suspects referred to judicial authorities was arrested, and judicial control was applied to the other.
In the file of Bahaddin Sefer, whose lifeless body was found in 2007 inside a refrigerator covered with concrete in the courtyard of a house in Mersin, the investigation was conducted based on information that Sefer was last seen around 2001. Statements were taken from 32 people in different provinces; witness statements and communication records were re-examined. 6 suspects were detained in simultaneous operations carried out in 6 provinces centered in Mersin.
In the file of İbrahim Akgöl, who was stabbed to death on the seashore in the Samandağ district of Hatay in 2006, new action was taken after 20 years. In the investigation, HTS records and witness statements were examined; information was sought from a total of 52 people in 16 provinces, 10 of whom were in penal institutions. In the operation targeting 12 suspects, 11 people were detained, while it was determined that one suspect was already in a penal institution.
In his statement, Gürlek thanked the Chief Public Prosecutor's Offices of Konya, Kahramanmaraş, Mersin, and Samandağ, as well as the relevant police and gendarmerie units conducting the investigations. Minister Gürlek stated, "We will not allow time to cover up murders, and we will continue our struggle for justice to be served."
News Source: 12punto
