"Fine & Release": Tractor That Never Left an Isparta Village Fined for Speed and Toll Violations, in Istanbul (!)

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(CNN Türk website, 8 January 2026)

                               "Formula One" tractor.

Emine Tüzün (67), who lives in the Eğirdir district of Isparta, has 

received multiple fines from Istanbul for the license plate of her 

tractor, which she never took out of her village (!). Emine hanım, 

who had the previous fines cancelled as a result of her appeals,  

recently received another fine notice. She said (in exasperation!)

that she would change the license plate as soon as possible.

Emine hanım, a mother of 11 children (!) living in Gökçehüyük 

village in Eğirdir district, is facing trouble because of the license 

plate of her tractor. In 2021, she received nine fines for allegedly 

passing through Istanbul's highways and bridges without paying tolls. 

These fines were served in 2022, and after appealing, the fines were

cancelled. In May 2024, she received another notification for a 690 

lira fine for exceeding the speed limit on the Istanbul Northern Ring 

Road. She appealed this as well. After reviewing camera footage, 

the fine was determined to have been issued in error and was 

cancelled by court order.

The real culprit. The resemblance is uncanny. Easy mistake.

However (!), Emine hanım recently received a notification from the 

Istanbul 5th Enforcement Office regarding her tractor's license plate, 

this time alleging a debt of 735 lira in toll fees and 1019 lira in late 

payment interest for illegal crossings on bridges and highways 

in 2025. 

She related that: "I received a payment order for my tractor, which 

has the same license plate as a luxury car with an Azerbaijani 

registration, and is registered in my name, for allegedly crossing 

the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge and the Northern Ring Road without

paying. I am being asked to pay the debt, which amounts to 1019 lira 

including late payment interest, or to declare my assets within 10 days. 

I am shocked. We have appealed again to CİMER (the Presidential 

Communication Center) and the relevant institutions. Let's see what 

the result will be."

Radar trap love for a faraway tractor.

Emine hanım added that she received the first payment notice in 2022 

and appealed, proving that the vehicle allegedly involved in the illegal 

crossing was not a tractor: "After we appealed, the camera recordings 

were reviewed, and it was determined that the violator was a car with 

Azerbaijani license plates. The Ministry apologized for this mistake 

and said the fine was canceled."

Emine hanım also noted that the same license plate received a speeding 

ticket from the Istanbul Traffic Control Branch Directorate in May 2024, 

saying, "We appealed this fine as well. A year later, the Istanbul 

Anatolian 3rd Magistrates' Court canceled the fine on the grounds that 

it was issued in error. Just when we thought we were free, the 

enforcement office issued a payment order for the collection of another 

debt."

Fed up with the fines and the experiences she's had coming from Istanbul, 

about 600 kilometers away from her village (!), said she will change her 

tractor's license plate as soon as possible by making the necessary 

applications and wants to stop receiving fine notices. Emine hanım said, 

"We were shocked that a tractor that never leaves the village and only 

works in the fields was fined as if it were driving around in a city like

Istanbul. Imagining the tractor being caught by radar seemed a bit 

far-fetched to me. Because the maximum speed for tractors is 40 

kilometers per hour. I don't even want to think that there are traffic 

police officers who don't know this."

The little tractor that could...but didn't.

"(No) Brake & Release": Out-of-Control Truck Waylays Two Tourists, Killing One, in Istanbul

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sabah Newspaper, 7 January 2026)

                                   Accidental tourists.

In Istanbul's Beykoz district yesterday at about 3 o'clock in the 

afternoon, the driver of a truck loaded with wood lost control of

his vehicle as it descended a hill, hit a parked car and then two

tourists, Wiebe Wermer and İllaria Carroza, walking on the

sidewalk. (!)

Police and medics rushed to the scene but found driver Emet 

Tüfenk squished to death inside his truck.  Tourist Wermer (28)

also died, and Carroza (27) is receiving treatment at a hospital. 

"Inherit & Release": Endless Lawsuit Over Priceless Properties Dogged by Wanna-be Heirs, in Antalya

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 6 January 2026)

     Lawyer Yılmaz wishing he'd become a truck driver.

The fake heirs of Arap Süleyman and Hacı Bekirzade Mehmet Ağa, 

two main heirs of billions of dollars of land in Antalya, are affecting 

the case that has been going on for about 70 years. Necati Yılmaz, 

one of the lawyers of the case, said, "Anyone who finds the name 

'Süleyman' in his family comes to this file." (!)

In the 67-year-old case regarding lands worth billions of dollars in 

the city, registered in the name of Arap Süleyman, Hacı Bekirzade 

Mehmet Ağa and the Treasury, there is a problem of fake heirs and 

their involvement in the cases. In this area of ​​2 million 400 thousand 

square meters; Tourism Practice Hotel, Antalya Training and Research 

Hospital, Falez and Rixos hotels, Glass Pyramid Park, AKM, Atatürk 

Culture Park, Glass Pyramid Fair and Congress Center, Antalya 

Tennis Specialization Club, fuel station, Antalyaspor Facilities, 

Corendon Stadium, Antalya Courthouse, Antalya Sports Hall, 

around 10 thousand residences in numerous sites, Meltem Market 

Place, facilities, schools, parks, the Regional Land Registry 

Directorate, mosques, parking lots, cooperatives and many other 

structures.

Lawyer Necati Yılmaz, who has been following the case for more 

than 20 years on behalf of Hacı Bekirzade Mehmet Ağa and some 

of the heirs of Arap Süleyman, pointed out that there are hundreds 

of people who appear to be parties in this file. Yılmaz said, "They say, 

'We are the heirs of Arab Süleyman', but they have no idea how 

they became heirs. Anyone who finds the name 'Süleyman' in their 

family comes to this file. The courts are also at fault. They decided 

to accept the primary intervention requests regarding these requests, 

without examining them or fulfilling the relevant procedural 

measures. A lot of people seem to be actually involved in the file, 

but they do not even know how they actually became heirs."

"It's mine!"...

Stating that it was decided to reject the request of the person who 

claimed to be the heir of Hacı Bekirzade Mehmet Ağa in the case, 

Necati Yılmaz said, "Actually, he is not yet a party in the case. 

In other words, it is not possible for him to make a request before 

a decision is made regarding his request for intervention, that is, 

without gaining the title of 'party'. The court made such a decision 

by mistake." 

"In other words, although there was no need to make 

a decision and there was no need to make any decision, it decided 

to reject it. They also used this and the file is again in the 

Regional Court of Justice. However, "The Regional Court of 

Justice has already made a decision 3 months ago. What is the 

point of sending the same decision there again? The purpose here 

is to drag the file out somehow. Various people are trying to take 

advantage of this," he said.

Giving the example of H.Y., who intervened in the case with 

assertions that he was the heir of Arap Süleyman's daughter 

Hava and was tried for the crime of forgery of documents, Yılmaz 

said, "The person called H.Y. came and made demands 

in exchange for withdrawing these cases. But of course, it is not 

just about H.Y. withdrawing his demand. There are hundreds of 

people. There is a group of people. For example, they claim that 

they are the heirs of Süleyman Ağa's granddaughter Zeynep." 

"There are those who claim that Zeynep's date of birth is 1877. 

The date of birth of the people they claim to be Zeynep's 

daughter and son in their family is 1872. In other words, they 

claim that they are children born before their mother (!). But the 

courts accept the requests for intervention without sufficient 

examination."

Necati Yılmaz stated that adding such people to the file as 

interveners made the case difficult and continued as follows:

"The more parties there are, the more difficult it is. Everyone 

has the right to appeal. A lot of people, whether interested or not, 

have such rights. You are granting these rights illegally. That's

why the case drags on. A lot of people die between the two 

hearings (!). They have to participate in the cases. The court is

trying to include the inheritance certificates of people we do not 

know whether they are really heirs or not, and their children 

and their children in the case. These are the situations that 

make these cases drag on."

In this case, in which the heirs of 'Süleyman Ağa', who was 

mentioned in a similar incident in Serik district because of the 

name 'Süleyman', also intervened and caused chaos, sacks full 

of documents were created in 67 years. Lawyer Necati Yılmaz, 

one of the names who has been the lawyer of the case for a long 

time, also stated that there are bags of documents related to this 

case that has been going on since 1958 and the cases filed 

within the scope of the subject.

Generation gap.

"Beat & (No) Release": Driver Who Beat Up Snowball-throwing Teenagers Jailed, in Diyarbakır

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 5 January 2026)

Thanks to social media, Y.T. didn't have a snowball's

chance in hell of getting away with it. 

Teenagers M.F.O. (15), B.D. (15) and İ.H.E. (12) were throwing

snowballs at cars from an overpass in the Bağcılar neighborhood

in Diyarbakır city.  Taking exception to the snowball attack, 

minibus driver Y.T., whose vehicle was hit, pursued the teenagers

and beat them up. 

The altercation on the overpass was captured on video by another

driver, spread on social media and resulted in the capture of Y.T.

by police, who put him in jail.  The teenagers are said to be in good

condition. 

"Fleece & Release": Car Dealer to the Stars Absconds, Amid Fraud Charges, in Kadıköy

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 4 January 2026)

       If you have to ask how much, you can't afford it.

Police conducted a raid on a luxury car dealership that caters to 

football players, famous singers and other wealthy people in

Istanbul's Kadıköy district, only to find that owner Şahin Çolak

had fled the country amid accusations of an 11 million TL (about

$256,000) fraud. 

In any case, the fancy cars at Çolak's "S Class Oto Galeri" on 

Bağdat Boulevard were seized by the police and taken to a 

police parking lot to deterimine rightful ownership.  Efforts to

track down Çolak are continuing. 

"Bowl & Release": Vintage Bocce Team From Van Old Folks Home Heading to Turkey's Championship

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 3 January 2026)

                           A win is standing back up.

A bocce team formed from residents of a nursing home in Edremit 

district of Van aims to win first place in this year's Turkish 

championship.  The Edremit Nursing Home Bocce Team, formed 

with the participation of nursing home residents, competed in the 

"60+ Adults Bocce Tournament" this year, winning 6 out of 8 

matches against teams from Artvin, Ardahan, Kars, and Ağrı.

The four-person team, aged between 61 and 76, finished first in 

their group and qualified for the Turkish championship to be held 

in Antalya.  The team, which trains three days a week in the nursing 

home's training hall under the supervision of sociologist and team 

coach Ferit Kadaş, aims to win first place in the Turkish 

championship.

It's all about strategy...

Ekrem Koçak, a 70-year-old bocce team player, told an AA reporter 

that he first encountered bocce at the nursing home.  Stating that he 

had previously participated in tournaments, Koçak said, "I had gone 

to Antalya for a tournament before. I came in third there. We 

participated in the competitions again this year. We are traveling to 

Antalya. We eliminated our opponents in the group stage. Our goal in 

the championship is to be on the podium, finishing first or second. 

We want to return with our heads held high."

New Yorkers eager to meet Edremit in the Olympics this year.

Cemil Selman, 61, who said he played bocce for the first time at the 

nursing home, said, "I learned bocce here thanks to the people at the 

nursing home. We eliminated our opponents in the group stage and 

came here. I am very excited to go to Antalya. Hopefully, we will be 

champions there."

76-year-old Şaban Şabanoğlu, who said he had recently moved to the

nursing home, stated, "We started playing bocce with our friends here. 

We have a great time together. When we go to competitions, we also 

get the opportunity to visit the historical sites of those places. We are 

very excited to go to Antalya. We are going there to win."

"Beat & Release": Coffeeshop Owner Barred "Dangerous" Game Players, Who Were Then Shot Dead, in Adana

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 1 January 2026)

 

      Life's a game...that ends in death.

In Adana's Yüreğir district on 27 December at about 2 o'clock in 

the morning, Tolgahan Akyüz (25) and Berdan Balsak (22) came

to the coffeeshop of Kafur U. (61), with the intention of playing

board games.  

However (!), Kafur U. refused to admit the two, declaring them to

be a danger to his establishment.  Other customers joined in the 

argument, which spilled out onto the street.  Gunfire erupted from

the floor above the coffee shop, hitting and killing both Akyüz and 

Balsak. 

Kafur U. "explained" that he told the two that "you have enemies, 

so your coming and going here puts us in danger. You can't play 

games here."  In any case, police took Kafur U. and 10 others into

custody.  Four unlicensed revolvers and a hunting rifle were 

recovered from the homes of the suspects, who all claimed not to

have fired on the deceased. (!)  They were, nevertheless, all jailed

on the charge of "murder with intent to kill".