"Beat & Release": Under House Arrest, He Kills Wife at Home, Sheds Electronic Clamp and Flees, in Ankara

türkçe links to original Turkish article.

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 22 November 2024)

                      Home is where the heartless is.

Yesterday, Servet Bozkurt, who was under house arrest and wearing an 

electronic clamp for arranging a courthouse attack on Selma Ateş Kazanç, 

the older sister of murdered "Ülkü Ocakları" (Idealists Hearths - a right-

wing group) chief Sinan Ateş, killed his estranged wife and her boyfriend 

in Ankara, before fleeing to Istanbul.

At the 2 October hearing concerning Ateş's murder, Selma hanım was

attacked by Mert Can Kılıç, to whom Bozkurt had given 3,000 TL

(about $87) to perpetrate the assault.  Consequently, Bozkurt was 

sentenced to house arrest.

Yesterday in Ankara's Etimesgut district, Bozkurt and his wife Elif

Bozkurt, who is in the process of divorcing Bozkurt, argued at

their home. As their children sought refuge in a neighbor's house,

Bozkurt slit Elif hanım's throat, broke off the electronic 

clamp and fled the scene.   He then went to the shop of Elif hanım's

alleged boyfriend Hasan Şahin and stabbed him to death. 

Last night Bozkurt was captured at a hotel in Istanbul's Beylikdüzü

district.  He had left prison a year ago. 

Etimesgut, at mark.

****************************************************

türkçe links to original Turkish article.

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 22 November 2024)

                       "We would rather not die."

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya provided some grim statistics at a

TBMM (Turkish Parliament) hearing: 

Murders of women: 284 in 2022; 309 in 2023; 276 in first 10

months of 2024;

Restraint orders on males; 162,897 (!) - first 10 months of this year;

Security personnel suicides: last 1.5 years - 79 police; 74 Gendarmerie;

2 Coast Guard.  

"Dig & Release": Fake City Workers Digging in Downtown Isparta Were Treasure Hunters

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 21 November 2024)

          They claimed to have a secret treasure map.

The night before last at about nine-thirty, four "municipal workers"

wearing orange work vests began to dig on the sidewalk with a 

back-hoe in the center of Isparta city.  The four told onlookers that

they were city employees.  Shortly thereafter, though, their digging

caused damage to the underground electric and natural gas lines,

prompting the aforesaid onlookers to inform the authorities. 

Quickly, city officials and utilities personnel arrived at the scene

and determined that the four "municipal workers" were, in fact,

treasure hunters (!).  Three of them were apprehended at the scene

and the fourth was spotted by acting police chief Volkan Güneş,

who got out of his car and nabbed the suspect. 

After giving statements to the police, İsmail Avcı, Halis Tümen

Yaşar Güzel, Hacı Duran Cırdı and a fifth suspect, Şükrü Canıtez,

were arrested for "illegal trafficking in historical works" and 

"damage to public property".  The suspect refuted the charge 

about "treasure hunting" and "explained" that they were merely

doing some work on a construction project in the region (!). 

"Bleed & Release": Two Russians Caught Smuggling 5,000 Leeches into Turkey at Istanbul Airport

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 20 November 2024)

Customs guy should have taken leave that day (yuk!).

On 18 November at Istanbul Airport customs officials x-rayed

a suitcase belonging to two Russian citizens and found 5,000 

live medicinal leeches (!) in two traveling bags.  Local animal 

protection officials in nearby Arnavutköy district were notified 

and found that the Russians did not have proper documentation

for the creatures, which are protected under the CITES 

(Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of 

Wild Fauna and Flora) Agreement.

Consequently, all 5,000 leeches, weighing 8.34 kilograms, 

were seized and the two Russians were fined 2,624,816 TL

(about $76,000) for trying to import the leeches into Turkey

illegally. 

None of the 5,000 leeches had work permits for 

Turkey either!

"Beat & Release": Wild Celebration Upon Inmate's Release from Jail, in Adana

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 18 November 2024)

       Might just go back in after "celebration".

A prisoner just released from jail in Adana celebrated in the 

streets of the 19 Mayıs Mahallesi neighborhood of the city's

Yüreğir district with his friends and relatives, setting up a 

sound system for music, lighting torches and firing guns into

the air (!). 

The mayhem was posted on social media (of course), prompting

the police to  come and try to quell the disturbance. 

"X" marks the mayehm.

"Beat & Release": When Social Media Phenoms Collide Sparks (and Bullets) Fly, in Ankara

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 17 November 2024)

          Like two supernovas crashing into each other!

Last night at about 8 o'clock social media phenoms Çağlayan

Yıldırım and Cansum Şener (29) met to settle their differences

in the Plevne neighborhood of Ankara's Sincan district. An

argument erupted between the two and Cansum hanım shot

Çağlayan hanım with a revolver in her leg, before fleeing the

scene with her boyfriend. 

You think just anybody can do this job??!!

Çağlayan hanım was taken to a hospital for treatment and 

is said to be in good condition.  In any case, Çağlayan hanım

posted a video of the incident on social media.  As for Cansum

hanım, who has a police record of 80 crimes (!), she and her

boyfriend were arrested in Altındağ district and the revolver

she used in the incident was seized by police. 

Purported Pablo Picasso Masterpiece Seized in Remote Northeastern Anatolia

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 16 November 2024)

           OMG! Turkish censors asleep at the switch!

In raids conducted by the Gendarmerie in the hinterlands

on Anatolia,  3,250 coins from the Ottoman, East Rome, and 

Byzantine periods were recovered, along with a painting 

claimed to be a Pablo Picasso masterpiece (!). 

In simultaneous Gendarmerie raids in 14 provinces of  east 

and southeast Anatolia, 21 suspects were pursued and taken

into custody - 19 of them were released after giving statements

and the other two were brought before a judge but released

under judicial supervision. 

The raid in Bayburt yielded the  purported Picasso painting, 

which is now being evaluated by experts to determine whether 

it is an authentic product of that great master. The suspects 

sought to sell it for 6 million Euros.

No doubt painted during Picasso's "Bayburt Period".

Driverless Metro Train Bypasses Five Stations, in Istanbul

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 16 November 2024)

driverless disasters click to see just how bad it can get.

                              Not the tunnel of love.

A driverless metro train left the Üsküdar station en route to

Samandıra but after passengers disembarked at the Bulgurlu

station the train passed by the Ümraniye, Çarşı, Yamanevler,

Çakmak and İhlamurkuyu stations without stopping (!).

Passengers alarmed by the train missing their stops pressed

the emergency button but to no avail.  Finally, the train came

to a halt near (but not at) the Altınşehir station.  Passengers

found a way to get off the train and walked along the tracks 

in the tunnel (!) to the Altınşehir station.

On one of the videos taken by the stranded passengers, 

someone alerts the others, saying "Hurry up and get off!

There's a train coming from behind!"

Oh yeah, sometimes there's an unscheduled express.