He called the wife of the man he slit the throat of in the mosque: 'Go collect your husband's corpse now'

Y.Ş., who slit the throat of Şevki T.—with whom he allegedly had a prior feud—while he was praying in a mosque in Kayseri on June 19, 2025, has appeared before the Kayseri 2nd High Criminal Court. While the wife of the deceased, Reyhan T., and her lawyers were present at the hearing, the defendant Y.Ş. attended via SEGBİS from the prison where he is being held. In his defense, Y.Ş. stated that he and the victim became neighbors in 2018 after he bought the house of Şevki T.'s brother, and that from that date on, disputes arose over trivial matters, leading to a feud between them.

"HE WAS INSULTING AND SWEARING"

Stating that he was a specialist sergeant and had resigned from his position due to the incidents between his family and Şevki T., Y.Ş. claimed that his sister, Fatma T., had given birth to a child from an illicit affair while her husband was abroad and had abandoned the baby. He said that after learning this, their home became a house of mourning, and that Şevki T., upon learning of the incident, would bring it up in every argument, insulting them by calling them "baby killers" and "child killers."

"GO COLLECT YOUR HUSBAND'S CORPSE NOW"

Continuing his defense, Y.Ş. said, "We wanted to move our house because of this. We couldn't move because we lost everything we had to a contractor. A week before the incident, my wife's relatives came to visit for the birth of our second child and my wife's surgery. Those who came parked in front of Şevki T.'s door. In the ensuing fight, Şevki T. beat my mother," he said.

Stating that he was lying in bed at home with his foot bandaged on the day of the incident, Y.Ş. said his wife told him to pay the milkman, which he did. He then claimed that his son fell off his bicycle, and at that moment, Şevki T., who was in his own garden, shouted, "You dishonorable baby killers, you scoundrels," and left the garden. He said that as the call to prayer was sounding, he lost his temper over these words from Şevki T., grabbed a knife from the concrete, and followed him, thinking, "He must be at the mosque." He stated that he said to Şevki T. in the mosque, "Now swear again, do the same thing again," and that he did not remember what happened afterward. He noted that he then called the police, said he would see his children at home and surrender, and that while on his way home, he saw Şevki T.'s wife and told her, "Go collect your husband's corpse now."

Y.Ş. stated that he was not requesting an acquittal, saying, "I wish these things hadn't happened. He swore for 7-8 years and I turned my back and walked away; I wish I had walked away again. I only request a reduction for unjust provocation."

"THERE WAS NO FEUD BETWEEN THEM"

The wife of the deceased, R.T., stated that there was no feud between them until they broke down their doors, and that no profanity ever came out of her husband's mouth, claiming that the defendant Y.Ş. was being incited by his mother. She also stated that during the parking incident a week before the event, Y.Ş.'s brother had used profanity and that 4 people had beaten her husband and his older brother.

During the hearing, people who were in the mosque at the time of the incident, neighborhood neighbors, and relatives of Y.Ş. were also heard as witnesses. The court panel adjourned the hearing to a later date to address missing items.

News Source: İHA