"Beat & Release": Husband-assisted "Suicide" in Van

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sabah Newspaper, 31 August 2021)

     Suicide isn't painless, especially when it's not suicide.

In Van last April, Çiğdem Ergin (23) 'fell' from the third floor and was 

seriously injured.  After the incident, her husband Sinan Ergin was 

questioned but released, claiming that his wife had tried to commit 

suicide.  However (!), after many days in intensive care, Çiğdem hanım 

was able to tell police that Ergin had thrown her from their balcony. 

After a renewed investigation, Ergin was charged with deliberately 

trying to kill his wife.  Nevertheless, Engin remains free, under judicial

supervision. 

Çiğdem hanım explained that "I've been married to that killer for 6 years.

Both he and his family subjected me to psychological torment, which

was even worse than the physical suffering I endured.  On the day of 

the incident, I went to get a cake for our daughter's birthday.  I saw my

husband eating with a women in their workplace and later on, when 

he came home we argued and he hit me in the eye."  

"I called the police and said I wanted to be taken to a shelter.  Hearing 

this, my husband began to choke me.  After that I don't remember 

anything.  I was in a coma for 27 days and in intensive care for 35 days.

When I woke up everyone asked me 'why did you try to commit 

suicide?!'  I was bewildered because that killer told everyone I'd tried

to kill myself!"

"I gave the police my statement and the real situation came out. Yet,

that killer is still walking the streets.  While I'm bedridden he's going

from wedding to wedding, posing. And he's telling everyone 'I'm 

innocent and I'm free from her.'  I'm barely alive.  Will justice be done

when I'm dead? I'm just 23, with two children, and getting by with

help from my family.  I have plates in my neck and left leg, after 

having spent 3.5 months in the hospital. Why isn't he being punished?!

He's telling me to rescind my complaint and if I don't give him the

children, there will be blood.  It's not just me who's at risk, it's my

whole family."

  

"People & Puppies": Erzurum Governor Watches Over Them All

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 31 August 2021)

       Who knows, maybe someday they'll be able to vote.

While Erzurum Governor Okay Memiş was riding his bicycle on a forest

road he noticed 12 puppies in a hollow and wondered where the puppies' 

mother was or whether she had abandoned them. So Memiş set up a 

'fotokapan' (camera trap) there and later on it reflected the mother's return. 

Memiş explained that "I ride my bike in the forest for exercise all the 

time.  I noticed the puppies in the hollow.  I was surprised at how 

many there were. Not seeing the mother, I wondered whether she had

abandoned them or whether some person had left the puppies there."

                          Gubernatorial Puppy Patrol

"We left food and water for the puppies and set up the 'fotokapan'.  At 

night we saw that the mother had come and was nursing them.  If they 

had been abandoned we would have had them brought to a shelter. By

means of the 'fotokapan' we can keep an eye on them and my guards

are even watching them at midnight."

"Stinger" Cocktail Contained the Real and Deadly Thing

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 30 August 2021)

Vural Şenalp (51) was involved in the gaming sector in Istanbul.  He

went on a business trip and holiday with a friend to Budva in 

Montenegro.  But on Sunday, 22 August, while having dinner with

his friend at a seaside restaurant he took a sip of his drink and 

immediately felt a pain in his throat.  

Şenalp realized that he had swallowed a bee (!) he hadn't noticed

in his drink.  He jumped in the water to revive himself but became

motionless after a few swimming strokes.  His friend rushed to his 

aid and others helped to get Şenalp on to dry land. 

After about 10 minutes of heart massage, Şenalp regained consciousness

and was taken to a hospital, where doctors confirmed that a bee had 

stung Şenalp in his throat.  After two days in intensive care, Şenalp

passed away on the day he was to have been brought back to Turkey.

Şenalp's body was returned to Turkey on Thursday and a funeral was

help on Friday in Zincirlikuyu Mosque in Istanbul.  Afterwards,

Şenalp was buried in Kilyos Cemetery. 

Razor Blades, Leeches and 'Hacamat' Cups for (or against) Your Health in Istanbul

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 27 August 2021)

You might want to check with your insurer about coverage.

In Esenyurt, Istanbul, realtor E.B. (35) got advice from a friend about 

trying 'hacamat' (cupping glass on skin) and leeches for her health

problems so she went to a flat in Fatih district's Aksaray neighborhood.

However, (!) when E.B. returned home she fell ill and was taken to

a hospital.  Subsequently, she filed a complaint at the police station.

When police went to the address they pressed the button marked

"sağlıkçı" (health-giver) and then raided that flat, finding all sorts of 

medicines, needles, prescriptions, gas cloths and cups used for 'hacamat'.  

In the refrigerator they found leeches and olives.  Two people in the 

flat were taken to the police station for questioning and released.  

The flat was sealed shut.

,

                  "Hanging out a shingle", doorbell-style.

E.B. explained that "The word 'sağlıkçı' was written on the bell so 

that was the first thing that raised my suspicions.  Nevertheless, I

said 'what the heck' and tried it.  I said I wanted 'hacamat' and leeches

applied to my private area. The I felt the cut of a razor blade to draw

blood instead of using leeches.  When I got home I could hardly stand

and there was lots of blood."  

I remember saying 'Mom, I'm dying!' but after that I don't recall anything.  

I woke up in the hospital with a doctor scolding me for having gone to 

such a place for 'treatment'.  He told me that, in any case, leech treatment 

is not done in one's private areas and that I would have to stay in the 

hospital for 24 hours until the bleeding stopped.  I was on the verge of 

death.  It was the first time I tried such a thing and the last!"

           Aksaray "sağlıkçı" is his Turkey franchisee.

"UFO Ahmet" Kills Earthling Family

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 26 August 2021)

Had orders to bring sacrificial earthlings to the mother ship.

In Kocaaeli's Gebze district in 2013, security guard Ahmet Özcan gained 

fame for claiming to have seen a UFO.  Now he is back in the news for

having stabbed his mother Azime Özcan and sister Yasemin Özcan to 

death in Kartal, Istanbul.  (!)

Özcan put the knife in the hand of Yasemin hanım and told police that

"my sister killed my mother and then committed suicide." Under police

cross-examination, however, Özcan admitted to the double murder and

explained that he was in debt, his first marriage had ended and now his 

second was on the verge of divorce proceedings.

Previously, Özcan had put pressure on his mother to sell a flat so he 

could pay his debt, but it wasn't enough.  This time, he tried to get his

mother to sell the flat she was living in. (!)  During the ensuing 

argument, Özcan stabbed his mother and sister to death. 

      Gebze-Kartal distance not too far, as the UFO flies.

"A Team Redux": The Battle of Keçiören Market, Sparked by a Rotten Peach

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 25 August 2021)

                   There's something rotten in Keciören.

In the Etlik neighborhood of Keçiören, Ankara, the day before yesterday

at about 1830 in the evening, a customer who purchased a peach at the

Osmanlı Semt Market declared the peach to be "ezik" (bruised and 

squashed) and wanted his money back.  The seller took exception to 

the customer's complaint and a fracas ensued, involving just about 

everyone else at the market. 

Keçiören Mayor Turgut Altınok happened to be at the market when

the fighting broke out and tried to intervene.  The combatants were

beyond anyone's control, though, and the market area turned into 

a battlefield, with customers fleeing in panic. 

Police soon arrived to try to quell the uproar but they were pelted

with potatoes and onions (!) by the sellers.  The police then fired 

into the air.  At the end of the 2.5-hour battle, 4 people were taken

to hospital and 13 sellers were taken into custody.  Nine of the 

sellers were released after processing for "resisting" and four others

were jailed for "intentional wounding" (with potatoes and onions).  

"Drop your potatoes and onions and come out with your produce

fresh!"

One of the sellers explained to Hürriyet: "This is not sellers' terror.

The Mayor came that day to inspect the market and a youth argued

with our sellers about a peach.  Half an hour later the municipal 

"A-team" (!) came and beat the seller into a coma.  When the other

sellers saw this they attacked the "A-team"."

Later, Mayor Altınok took to social media and wrote: "For years

we've done everything we could to let citizens shop comfortably

in the face of the market mafia. We're behind honorable sellers, of

course, but we have no tolerance for those who insult customers and 

sell rotten fruit." (!) 

    The Keçiören Municipal A-Team in an undated photo. 

"Beat & Release": If Twitter Was 'Forbidden', She'd Likely be Dead

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 23 August 2021)

         And if looks could kill, he wouldn't need that gun. 

Fatma Yasak (whose surname means 'forbidden') divorced Alper Tasalı

because of the violence he subjected her to.  Then Tasalı kidnapped

Fatma hanım at gunpoint.  He was arrested but released by the court.

Enraged, Fatma hanım declared on Twitter "I don't want to die!", after 

which Tasalı was re-arrested. (!)

In Esenyurt, Istanbul, Fatma hanım and Tasalı married three years ago

and began living with his mother. Early on in the marriage things went

well, but in the ensuing months Tasalı's violence toward Fatma hanım 

turned the situation into a nightmare for her.  After moving to her father's

home, Fatma hanım began to share her nightmare years on social media:

"One day when I was at home the bell rang and I opened the door to 

see him there holding a knife.  He began to attack me with it for an 

hour but somehow he didn't kill me that day.  That wasn't the last time,

though.  When he told me that he rented a house for just us to live in

and that he had changed, I believed him - but knowing I shouldn't."  

"We moved to our own place and things went well for a few months.

But then he began to show his real face again, starting fights over the

slightest things and subjecting me to violence.  So after two years of

this, I gathered my courage and moved back in with my own family

in July 2021."

                                  Extrajudicial lifesaver.

"The day before yesterday as I was walking along, a white car came in

front of me, Alper got out of it with a gun, which he fired next to me,

and forced me into the car.  At this point, I sent three messages to 

KADES (police protection system for women).  I asked Alper where

we were going and he told me we were headed to a vacant lot in Silivri

where he was going to kill me and then commit suicide." (!)

"I then got a call back from KADES and to prevent Alper from realizing

I was talking to the police I said I was talking to a prospective employer.

Then I said to the policeman on the phone that I couldn't come for the

job interview because I was en route to Silivri on an urgent matter.  I 

was able to send the police my location via WhatsApp.  I tried to quickly

erase the messages but Alper grabbed the phone from me and understood

that I was in contact with the police."

"Alper then threw both of our phones out the window.  Without my 

phone, I thought the only thing I could to was to try to persuade him 

that I wanted to make up.  He bought the story and agreed to give

me his gun, bullets and knife, which we dropped off at my father's

house.  I was able to tell my father the situation and he called the

police, who came and took Alper into custody."

However (!), after processing at the police station, Tasalı was released.

Fatma hanım then took to Twitter to decry Tasalı's release, writing 

"I don't want to die like Özgecan and Alyna!"  Thousands of responders

objected to the release on the Twitter label "#AlperTasalıTutuklansın"

(Arrest Alper Tasalı), prompting Tasalı's re-arrest last evening. (sigh...)

                        A little birdie got him into jail.

"Afghan Oxymoron": Be Careful What You Wish For

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 21 August 2021)

           Hoping to get four seats on the return flight.

Four Afghans in Istanbul posted a video on social media, saying they 

wanted to return to Afghanistan but were being prevented by Turkish

police. (!)    The four have been taken into custody and will be expelled

from Turkey. 

A group of Afghans who gathered in '15 July Square' in Zeytinburnu

made a video asserting that they wanted to go back to Afghanistan to

fight against the Taliban regime but that Turkish police were preventing

them from doing so: "The police are blocking us. We want to go back to

our country and live and die there.  We don't want to live in Turkey!"

The video-makers claimed that 5,000 Afghans now in Turkey want to go

back to their homeland.  After the video was posted on social media, 

police went into action and took H.R. (20), H.M. (19), M.A. (18) and 

F.T. (52!) into custody.  The four have been turned over to 'İl Göç'

(Turkey's immigration service) for expulsion.  H.R.'s residency permit

has been voided by the Turkish Interior Ministry. 

How do you say "glutton for punishment" in Afghanese?

Istanbul's Mass Transit Spokes-Dog

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 20 August 2021)

                                         "Tickets please!"

A Twitter user shared a picture of a dog riding on the Istanbul tram. 

Responding tweets then flooded in with pictures of the same dog (!) 

on a ferry, Marmaray (trans-Bosphorus metro), metro and Metrobüs.

The Istanbul street dog boarded the Bağcılar-Kabataş tram at the 

Tophane stop.  Passengers and a security guard tried to get the dog

off the tram but without success.  The guard asked the passengers:

"Is anyone upset by the dog being on the tram? The next stop is the

last stop anyway."  When no one objected, the dog continued on and

disembarked at Kabataş.

                                             "What?"

                                   

The dog then headed for the ferry pier and boarded the ferry to

Kadıköy (!).  After the tram photo of the dog was shared on Twitter,

tens of people shared photos of the same dog riding on the ferries,

metro trains, and buses.

 

                                     Love the earrings!

                                         Easy rider.

                                        

Wild Horses Couldn't Drag Them Away

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 19 August 2021)

                                          Horse sense.

One of the 'yılkı' (wild horses) in a pasture near Çakırüzüm village in 

Göle district of Ardahan province broke one of its hind legs somehow.  

Yet, as the horse lay on the ground unable to walk, the other horses in 

the herd stood by its side. 

Some local residents noticed the situation.  A veterinarian came to

treat the injured horse and officials from the Agriculture and Forests

Directorate took the horse to a treatment center.  The other 'yılkı' then

headed back to their mountains.

"Collapse & Run": Builder Flees Arrest After Building Falls in Flood

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Milliyet Newspaper, 18 August 2021)

                            Forgot the waterproofing.

The builder of the Ölçer apartment building that collapsed during the 

recent flooding in Bozkurt district of Kastamonu province, Mehmet Ö., 

has been taken into custody in Esenyurt, Istanbul.  In an effort to avoid 

capture, Mehmet Ö. had changed both his clothes and the bag he carries. 

In the scope of an investigation into the building collapse carried out by

the İnebolu, Kastamonu, public prosecutor, it was learned that Mehmet Ö.

was in Istanbul.  When he heard that another builder of a collapsed

building had been arrested in Kastamonu, Mehmet Ö. fled his home in 

Sarıyer, Istanbul.

Leaving his own car in front of his house, Mehmet Ö. borrowed a friend's

car, went to the office of a relative in Kağıthane, Istanbul, and spent the

night there.  The next day, when he learned that police had come to his 

Sarıyer home, Mehmet Ö. changed his clothes and his handbag, called

a taxi and went to Esenyurt, where he was finally arrested. After 

processing, Mehmet Ö. will be sent to Kastamonu. 

"Stateless" Army Deserter, Now Ready to Serve at 55

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 16 August 2021)

                               Benched. "Put me in, coach!"

Ahmet Önder (55) deserted while doing his military service 35 years ago

in Balıkesir.  Seven years later he was stripped of his Turkish citizenship.

Since then Önder has been living with a "stateless" document given to 

him by the Turkish immigration service.  Now he wants to get his Turkish

ID card and is willing to go back in the army, too. (!)

Önder was born in Siirt in 1966 and then moved with his family to 

Diyarbakır.  In 1986 he went to Balıkesir for his military service.  However,

six days later Önder deserted and went back to Diyarbakır, where he has

worked as a day laborer to support his family of four children. 

Önder was stripped of his Turkish citizenship in 1994 by an Interior Ministry

decision citing his failure to do his military service.  His subsequent attempts

to get his citizenship back failed and he was given the "stateless" document

by the immigration service on 29 March 2017.  

Önder explained that "They stripped me of my citizenship seven years after

I deserted.  I want to get my identity back.  My four kids have ID cards but

I don't. I'm ready to go in the army if necessary.  In those days I was young

and stupid but now I'm ready to do my patriotic duty.  When I go to a 

hospital they won't take care of me.  I've been given a refugee ID and the

hospitals don't accept that. Put me in the army but give me an ID card!"

"Beat & Release": Judge's Drinking Buddy Somehow (!) Beats the Rap & Goes Free

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 14 August 2021)

                         Order(ing 'rakı') in the Court!

In Manavgat, Antalya, in December 2019, eight suspects, including 

owners of 5-star hotels, were arrested on a variety of charges including 

fraud and loansharking.  According to the indictment,  The suspects 

committed 11 different crimes 48 times (!), acquiring 84.5 million TL 

(about $10 million) in ill-gotten gains.  The prosecutor asked for jail 

sentences amounting to between 145 and 491 years, along with fines 

equal to 126,000 days.

However (!), Ö.İ., the judge overseeing the trial, ruled that there was not

"definite and convincing evidence" so he acquitted all the suspects 

except one.  Ertekin Kök, a lawyer for one of the complainants filed

an appeal to a higher court and included a photo of Ö.İ. sitting at the 

same 'rakı' (a Turkish alcoholic beverage) table with lead suspect E.B.

at E.B.'s hotel (!). 

The prosecutor has opened an investigation and an inspector from 

HSK (which oversees judges and prosecutors in Turkey) has been

sent to Antalya.  

 

"Lost & Found": Turkish Stork's Flight Signal Reappears in Jordan

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 13 August 2021)

the back-story click here for this stork story background.

                First-time traveler's excellent adventure.

The tracking signal of a baby stork, the youngest of five chicks of mother 

stork 'Yaren', and identified by trackers as 'number five', was lost the day

before yesterday.  But today the signal was tracked to Jordan, confirming

that 'number five' is alive and well. 

Mother stork Yaren, who has become famous for her long-standing 

friendship with fisherman Adem Amca (Uncle Adem) of Bursa, gave

birth to five chicks this year.  The Karacabey municipality in Bursa

attached a 40-gram solar energy satellite tracking device to chick 'number

five' in June in order to follow the chick's flight path. 

Last week 'number five' left the nest in Bursa for the first time and 

began to head south with a flock it joined.  Thousands of people have

been able to follow 'number five''s progress by means of the free app

'Animal Tracker'. 

However, as 'number five' flew toward the Gulf of Iskenderun near

Adana's Yumurtalık district the signal was lost.  A frantic search was

launched to find 'number five'.  As it turned out, the signal appeared 

again yesterday, this time from Jordan, letting all of 'number five''s 

many followers breathe a sigh of relief.

  Mom giving siblings the good news about 'number five'.

"Passport & ID Cards": Istanbul Printers' Fame Among Illegals Backfires

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 12 August 2021)

                 Where are they headed?  Figure the odds.

In Fatih district of Istanbul, police raided a print shop where Syrian N.M.

and Afghan M.F. were printing fake passports and ID cards for illegal 

migrants trying to get to European countries.  Thousands of fake

documents were seized along with seals and printing machines.

The fame of N.M. and M.F. had spread far and wide throughout the 

Middle East and most illegals entering Turkey headed to their print

shop.  A search by police yielded 35 passports made up in the names

of different people belonging to various countries, as well as 4,700 

blank ID cards used for the new type of cards. 

                               Bring the kids along too!

"Beat & Release": Bad Day for Mothers-in-Law

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 10 August 2021)

                                    First green coffin...

In Ziya Gökalp village of Karaman province, Doğan T. went to the home

of his mother-in-lawNecla Köçyiğit to see his estranged wife Özlem T.

and their two children.  During the ensuing discussion, tempers flared 

and Doğan T. stabbed Özlem T., his brother-in-law Osman B. and Necla

hanım, who died from her wounds.  Özlem T. and her older brother 

Osman B. were injured.  Doğan T. was captured by police. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Milliyet Newspaper, 10 August 2021)

                                   ...second green coffin.

In Kumluca district of Antalya province, Ali Alataş (55) entered the

home of his ex-wife Gülcan Kılınç (35) and his ex-mother-in-law Gülizar

Kılınç (54) through the balcony and shot them both to death.  Previously,

Alataş had kidnapped Gülcan hanım at gunpoint and she subsequently

obtained a restraining order against him.

Local shopkeepers noted that Alataş staked out the house for 24 hours

and yesterday at 4 o'clock in the morning he entered via the first-floor

balcony, intent on killing Gülcan hanım, the mother of their three

children, who divorced him 3 years ago.  While Alataş was killing the

two women, the three children were also in the house, as were Gülizar

hanım's two children. 

Alataş was captured by police soon after the murders.  A neighbor told

reporters that "at 0345 hours I was awakened by gunshots. I heard a man

shouting 'I have nothing to lose!' and a woman pleading 'don't kill my

mother!'  Then I heard five gunshots.  The man climbed down a rope

and escaped.  He had previously kidnapped his ex-wife and forced her

into a car at gunpoint."

               Couldn't bear being an "ex" son-in-law.

A local shopkeeper noted that "he was roaming around here for 24 hours,

talking with the kids on the sidewalk.  He was waiting across from the

apartment building in front of the PTT building, watching who was going

in and out of the apartment building, saying 'if I see a man go in I'll grab

him and kill the both of them.'   He'd been fined many times for violating

restraining orders."

"Butt & Stab": Smoking Can be Dangerous for Your Health

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 8 August 2021)

                   Smoking's collateral damage.

In Kağıthane, Istanbul, Kemal Barış Ç. flicked a cigarette butt onto the 

balcony of neighbor Aydoğan Özdemir (43).  An argument ensued 

between the two and quickly becoming a fistfight.  Kemal Barış Ç.

then stabbed Özdemir in the heart, killing him.

Within 24 hours police tracked down Kemal Barış Ç., arraigned him

for murder and put him in jail.  

                  Booked as an accessory to murder.

Istanbul Taxi Drivers Help Police Nab Counterfeiter Who Spread Fake $100 Bills

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 6 August 2021)

                            "Mint" condition home office.

In Istanbul, some taxi drivers filed complaints with the police, saying that

two years ago people identifying themselves as tourists gave them 

counterfeit $100 bills.  Since then similar complaints have continued to

increase.  

In an effort to nab the counterfeiter, police examined the fake money

and noticed that, just like real dollars, these fake ones had 'holograms',

'bulges' and 'color-changing ink'.  These bills passed through many 

detection machines as genuine. 

After months of investigations, police determined that the fake money

was being printed by Refik Şahin in a flat in Esenyurt.  Last Tuesday 

in a raid police seized $5.65 million worth of fake 100 banknotes, a 

computer used for printing the bills, a printer, cutting implements and

a machine that combined three different papers.  Şahin was jailed.

Şahin received $20 for every $100 he sold to "wholesalers", who, in 

turn, gave the fake money to "tektekçi" - those able to pass the fake

banknotes by posing as tourists and targeting taxi drivers.

                      The artist in a pensive moment.