Look Who Came Out of the Closet

closet links to original article

(Sözcü and Milliyet Newspapers, 29 June 2012)

Police went into action after getting a tip that prostitution
was being conducted in a nightclub in the Melekli section
of Iğdır (on Turkey's border with Armenia.) However,
upon entering the nightclub they found noone there.

But when they opened a closet in the kitchen they couldn't
believe their eyes. There was a tunnel inside the closet
which led to a secret room where the prostitutes were
hidden. The police then took all the women out of the
room one by one.

A total of 12 foreign women came out of the room,
all of whom were taken into police custody, along with
two  people charged with human trafficking. After
statements were taken at the police station the women,
from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia and Azerbaijan,
were taken to the state hospital for health checks. They
claimed that they had been forced into prostitution.

The women were all deported and the interrogation of the
two people charged with human trafficking is continuing.

Beach Volleyball in The Joint

the joint links to original article

(Sabah Newspaper, 28 June 2012)

A 'first' for Turkey has been recorded at the Samsun
E-type Prison where 10 truckloads of sand have been
dumped in the prison courtyard, creating a beach volley-
ball court.

The prisoners are very partial to the game and to make
it as realistic as possible sea sound effects have been
added during the matches. Warden Özer Duman, who
oversees 500 inmates, said that 'we have the best physical
living conditions of any prison in Turkey. It's impossible
for the prisoners here to get into fights because we have
so many things going on. We even brought the beach to
their feet. The cellblocks have a tournament between
each other in the sand we've dumped in the courtyard.
We also have a workshop.'

Duman stated that these programs have reduced the
incidence of crimes inside the prison and he noted that
there is a regular volleyball court, as well. But he
added that 'the inmates feel better when they play
the game in their bare feet. Their stress and heartburn
go to the sand.'

Duman said that 150 prisoners are taking high school
and university courses. He explained that 'our aim is
for them to have a profession. I want them to leave
here as university graduates. Our one desire is for
one of our inmates to one day become a professor.'

Why UFO's Get a Bad Rap

ufo links to original article

//ed. note: subsequent information has revealed that the
'object' in question is a street lamp.//

In Konya, Sadrettin Soranlar, the general manager of the local
daily Rasyonel Haber newspaper, took a picture on 1 June at
the well-known picnic area Küpe where Kuğulu Park is located.
The other name by which Küpe is known is Kibele Mountain
and this is where Soranlar snapped the picture that included
an interesting object in the sky.

When he took the picture Soranlar didn't notice the object
because he was wearing a sun visor so when he looked at the
picture on his computer he was amazed to see a UFO there.
The head of the SİRİUS UFO Space Knowledge Research
Center, Haktan Akdoğan, wrote a written reply about the
object in the picture taken by the general manager of a local
newspaper in Konya, since the question 'this is a UFO, isn't it?'
came up.

In his statement, Akdoğan emphasized that the photograph was
the clearest one taken up to now and he added that 'the object
in the photograph is a UFO. We determined after investigating
that there was no fotoshopping at all done to the photo and
our center provided an official research conclusion report to this
effect.  Even though many people don't want to believe it, UFO's
are for real. People have to accept this henceforth.'

Akdoğan added that he and his team went to the Kibele Mountain
site in Seydişehir, Konya, for their investigation. He stated that
'the site where the picture was taken is now very important for us.
We will soon go there with our expert friends to conduct the
requisite scientific work.'

Let's Play Operation!

doctor links to original article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 23 June 2012)

Suna Yazııltaş (42), who lives in Gaziosmanpaşa, Istanbul,
went to Okmeydanı Training and Research Hospital two
years ago because of increasing pain. An ultrasound test
found a benign tumor in her left kidney. Yazılıtaş was checked
every six months but when the pain increased again she
returned to the hospital. Without another untrasound test
being conducted Yazılıtaş was told that an operation was
urgently necessary but that it would be done with the
laproscopic technique, meaning she would keep her kidney
and would be released from the hospital the same day.

On 7 September 2011 Yazılıtaş had an operation during which
a vein in her right leg was cut, resulting in a significant loss of
blood. A heart surgeon was called in during the operation and
Yazılıtaş was given more than 20 bags of blood. Yet although
just the benign tumor needed to be removed her entire left
kidney was taken out.

Yazılıtaş stayed in intensive care for 15 days and spent another
35 days in the hospital recovering. Whereas there was only
supposed to have been a small incision made in her stomach,
in fact, the cut was 30 centimeters and done improperly,
resulting in a hernia. When this happened Yazılıtaş had her
lawyer, Özal Sayan, file a suit in Istanbul's Second Administra-
tive Court, asking for 170,000TL in compensation for lifelong
disability and medicine expenses.

Another scandal associated with Yazılıtaş's operation emerged
seven months later when a foreign object was discovered in
Yazılıtaş's stomach, which swelled up making it impossible for
her to move.  Yazılıtaş had gone to visit relatives and when her
pain increased she was operated on at Konya Training and
Research Hospital on 27 April. Five forgotten pieces of gauze
were found during the operation.

V.G., the doctor Yazılıtaş accused of malpractice, stated that
nothing went wrong during the operation. He said that 'this
patient has been under observation for a year and a half. It
wasn't an unnecessary operation. There was a benign tumor
in the kidney. She herself said 'take my kidney' because of
the pain. I don't know anything about the gauze.'

Yazılıtaş stated that 'the forgotten pieces of guaze in my
stomach formed a mass of 11 centimeters. It was like I was
8 or 9 months pregnant. I don't know how I didn't die.'

Rookie Thieves Get Master's Lesson

fathersday links to original article

(Posta Newspaper, 16 June 2012)

In Sarıyer, Istanbul, some thieves entered the home of Waterworks
official Kenan O. in the early hours of 11 June and stole a safe.
Police teams looked into the matter after Kenan O. informed them
of it and found that there had been no forced entry. The police also
found the taxi used by the robbers after looking at video images and
tracked down the taxi driver, who told them that he had also become
suspicious of the group, which had loaded something wrapped in a
blanket into the truck of his taxi, and took a picture of them without
being noticed.

Police then raided the residence where the taxi driver had brought
the suspects in Fatih and took Recep K.(24), Lokman D.(20), Burak
E.(26) and Oğuz K.(22) into custody. The interrogation of the suspects
yielded a tale worthy of a film. Recep K. confessed to the crime and
provided police with the details, as follows: 'a girlfriend of ours lives
in the house we robbed. We met her while chatting in a cafe. One of
my friends who helped in the robbery is her boyfriend, Oğuz K. As
we were chatting about our respective fathers' wealth, the girl said
that her father had a safe in their house.

A bit later, Oğuz K. and Burak E. took the house key from the girl's
handbag and made a copy of it. When the girl left work and went
home they followed her and found out where it was. On 11 June,
Oğuz K. invited his girlfriend to come to Beşiktaş to have breakfast.
Recep K.added that 'we learned at this time that there was noone in
the house so while they had breakfast we went to the house and stole
the safe.'

Recep K. said that they first brought the safe to their home in Fatih
but when they couldn't open it they brought it to Okmeydanı where
an experienced thief opened the safe. Inside they found 10,000 Euros,
a licensed handgun and passports.  Before disappearing, the master
thief took 8,000 Euros, the handgun and the passports for himself,
leaving the suspects with just 2,000 Euros.

Recep K., Lokman D., Burak E. and Oğuz K. were transported to
jail. The master thief who opened the safe is being sought by police.

Severe Elevator Justice

elevator links to related article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 14 June 2012)

Selahattin Toğus, a judge in Istanbul's Second Major
Crimes Court, boarded the elevator yesterday in A
Block of the Justice Building at Çağlayan. Civan Yemen
(22) who was going to attend his brother's hearing on
the third floor boarded the elevator, as well, along with
three other people.

Toğus explained to the others that the elevator would
not work with so many people in it but Yemen argued
with him about this. Yemen then punched Judge Toğus in
the face, breaking four of his teeth.

Yemen was arrested and detained by the court on duty.

Horsepower-averse Horse Spooked

horsepower links to original article

(Milliyet Newspaper, 12 June 2012)

In Rize, Mustafa Memoğlu, who runs a salmon trout farm there,
put a generator on the back of a horse and started it up, spooking
the horse which ran away. The horse was found in a different
valley about three hours later gasping for breath.

A group of Swiss tourists had asked for help from the mayor of
Sahil village, Memoğlu, because they were planning to spend a
week in the upper portions of Koçdüzü valley, staying at a house
with no electricity or even a road. In response, Memoğlu loaded
the generator onto the horse's back for the 3-hour journey from
Ausor valley to Kocdüzü valley. He started up the generator
while it was on the horse's back to see whether it was in working
order or not. The spooked horse was quickly out of sight.

 

Cats' Curse, Bear's Bloody Nose

cats links to original article

(Sabah Newspaper, 8 June 2012)

In the Şişli neighborhood of Istanbul, animal-lovers set up
shelters for street cats, located in the back garden of the
offices of the neighborhood mayor, Yaşar Doğu, who served
for 42 years.  When Doğu died in 2011 his place was taken
by the senior member of the neighborhood council, Aziz
Akay, and the shelters were removed.

The animal-lovers then waged a six-month propaganda campaign
against Akay, who hoped to be elected mayor in his own right.
His competitors made promises about the cats, leading Akay
to pull out of the 3 June election in anger. Afterwards, Akay
made a statement, saying that 'yes, the cats made quite a filthy
mess but it wasn't me who had the shelters removed. City teams
came and removed them because of complaints.'


bear links to original article

(Sabah Newspaper, 11 June 2012)

Mustafa Doğan (52) went for a picnic with his family near the
village of Boğazkaraderbent in Pülümür district of Tunceli province
and was attacked by a bear yesterday around noon while strolling
in the forest there. His relatives alerted authorities and Doğan was
taken to Tunceli State Hospital by helicopter after the attack. His
right leg was broken and he suffered bruises all over his body.
Describing the attack, Doğan said that 'I fought with the bear for
ten minutes. It was a very big bear but in the end I punched it in
its nose, which began to bleed. I didn't show fright. If I had it
would have torn me to bits.'

Ten Kids Later, Acting Career Blocked

actress links to original article

(Sabah Newspaper, 7 June 2012)

Seralp Ç. (42), the mother of ten children who lives in Yüreğir
district of Adana, signed up for a theater course.  But her husband,
a taxi driver named Yılmaz Ç. (45), got angry when he called his
wife asking where she was and in reply heard 'I'm at my theater
course.' Seralp Ç., who claims that her husband continually beats
her,  called police when this happened, saying she was going to
commit suicide. She then entered the State Waterworks canal on
Ege Bağatur Boulevard up to her knees and waited as nearby
citizens and then the police tried to dissuade her.

Seralp Ç. shouted to police that 'I'm sick of living. My husband
beats me every day. I'm fed up with his beatings. He threatens
to kill me. I don't want to live anymore.' Three policemen came
alongside her and tried to talk her out of suicide as she slipped
and nearly got caught in the current. Yüreğir District Security
Chief Kenan Çay also came to the scene to talk with Seralp Ç.
At this point, Cafer Yılmaz (44), who was returning on foot to his
home from work, snuck up on Seralp Ç. as she was talking with
the police and took her out of the water.

Seralp Ç. said that there had been three things she wanted to be
in life - police officer, journalist and actress. Although it was too
late for the first two, she felt she could still be an actress but her
husband blocked this. It has been learned that Seralp Ç. had
photographs taken with Yılmaz Erdoğan, Yeşim Eren and other
artists who came to the city for the Altın Koza (Golden Cocoon)
Film Festival.

Seralp Ç. was taken by ambulance to the hospital and treated
with sedatives. Previously, claiming that her husband was
beating her, Seralp Ç. had tried to commit suicide on the D-400
highway and held her children hostage in her home.
  

Battle of Amerikan Island

american links to original article

(Sabah Newspaper, 7 June 2012)

Sellers who allegedly attacked municipal inspectors and
fired upon them, then tried to escape by boat in the Seyhan
River, Adana. They were captured in a police operation right
out of the movies. Ten people were taken into custody and
brought to police headquarters for interrogation.

The incident occurred yesterday at 4 PM at Amerikan Island
(actually a peninsula) on Adnan Menderes Boulevard. Municipal
inspection teams intended to close the shops of citizens selling
pirated goods. First the sellers and inspectors traded harsh words
but subsequently the scene turned into a battlefield, with both
side punching and beating each other with bats.

The security personnel at the scene proved inadequate so special
police teams were brought in as a group of the sellers began
throwing rocks at the police and inspectors. Allegedly, one of
the sellers even fired a shot at the inspectors. The police used
pepper spray to bring some of the sellers under control but
others set sail into the Seyhan River aboard the skiff 'Arzu',
in an effort to escape.

When this happened police went after them in a boat belonging
to the Underwater Bureau that had been waiting nearby. While
the police chased the sellers at sea other security personnel
waited on shore. Finally, the sellers were grounded on the river
bank, searched and taken into custody.

Killing Machine Spells Own Demise

killer links to original article

(Sabah Newspaper, 7 June 2012)

In Gaziantep, a murder suspect who killed three people wrote a
note when he killed his fourth, leaving a note on the body for the
next victim with the message 'it's your turn'. The note, however,
led to his arrest.

Last November three individuals who had a disagreement over
money with the Uçar family were attacked, with Yılmaz Ilik (36),
Yılmaz Kaya (31) and Eyüp Elalmış dying in a hail of bullets.
More than 50 empty cartridges were found on the blood-stained
street by the police murder squad which took Osman Uçar (22),
Emrah Bulut (18) and Mehmet Diksa'yı (26) into custody. One
of the suspects, Ahmet Uçar, escaped.

The body of Erdal Tüm (40) was found near Yağdöver village
last month with a note pinned to it which read 'you got what
you wanted. Now it's your turn...'. The name of the next victim
was written on the note, as well. Gendarmerie teams determined
that the murder had been committed because of bad feelings over
farm credits and that the suspect was Ahmet Uçar.

After a lengthy surveillance Uçar was caught. He was quite
surprised to see the police and had selected five more victims
for murder.

Talk About a Bad Trip!

badtrip links to original article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 7 June 2012)

In Torbalı, Hasan Şenoğul (37), who is employed at an
iron-woodworking workshop, lost his arm to an iron-
cutting machine nicknamed 'monster' the day before
yesterday while working at his home. His neighbor put
him in a car with license plate number 35 TPA 87 in order
to take him to Izmir Atatürk Training and Research Hospital.
However, when the vehicle reached Metropolis Avenue it
hit one Fatma Kara who was trying to cross the street.

Having already lost quite a bit of blood, Şenoğul was
transferred to a 112 Emergency Services ambulance bearing
plate number 35 RE 112. But the ambulance carrying Şenoğul
was then hit on the side by a car, plate number 35 AY 5753,
driven by A.H. (62), at the Torbalı-Bayındır intersection.
The force of the impact hurled the ambulance onto the median
strip, injuring ambulance driver Musa Ünal, emergency aid
technician Mehtap Aktepe and emergency medical technician
Süleyman Peraçiaraç. The driver of the car, A.H., and passenger
Necmi Necati Hızlı were also injured.

After being involved in two accidents en route to the hospital,
Şenoğul was put into yet another ambulance and finally reached
Izmir Atatürk Training and Research Hospital where he was
operated on. As for the other six people involved in the two
accidents, their treatment is continuing and their conditions are
said to be good.

Mayor Sets Sail Under Egg Attack

eggs links to related article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 3 June 2012)

The mayor of the Prince's Islands, Mustafa Farsakoğlu, wanted
to go to the largest island, Büyükada, via the ambulance boat
belonging to his municipality, from Maltepe, on the Istanbul
shore, when he was visited with an egg attack by five people.

Farsakoğlu, who was with his daughter, complained to the police
who took two individuals said to be egg-throwers into custody.
It is alleged that the egg attack was mounted by workers of
the company whose contract to run car ferries to the islands -
which the firm has been doing for three years - was canceled by
the Prince's Islands municipality.