16.12.2025 15:04
Mustafa Can Gül, 19 years old, who killed Prosecutor Ercan Kayhan by stabbing him in the throat in Çekmeköy, appeared before a judge for the first time. Gül, who is facing a life sentence, stated in his defense, "I am receiving psychological treatment and taking medication." On the other hand, the brutality of the incident was described by witnesses with the statements, "The defendant cut his throat while shouting 'Allahu akbar.' There was blood everywhere. Ercan's throat was bleeding profusely."
In a restaurant located in Ömerli, a district of Çekmeköy in Istanbul, Republic Prosecutor Ercan Kayhan (58) was stabbed to death in the throat by 19-year-old Mustafa Can Gül. After the incident, the suspect Mustafa Can Gül was taken into custody and transferred to the Anadolu Courthouse in Kartal. In his statements at the police station and the prosecutor's office, the suspect Gül admitted to the charges against him and was arrested by the duty magistrate on the request for his arrest for the crime of 'murder with monstrous feelings or by inflicting torture.'
FIRST TIME IN FRONT OF A JUDGE
Mustafa Can Gül, for whom the Anadolu Chief Public Prosecutor's Office demanded aggravated life imprisonment for the crime of 'premeditated murder with monstrous feelings,' appeared before a judge for the first time. The first hearing, held by the Anadolu 25th High Criminal Court, was attended by the detained defendant Mustafa Can Gül, the relatives of the deceased prosecutor, and the lawyers of the parties.
"I AM RECEIVING PSYCHOLOGICAL TREATMENT"
In his defense, detained defendant Mustafa Can Gül stated, "I am receiving psychological treatment. I am taking my pills for psychological treatment. My current defenses are true. The reason I did not explain the incident this way at first is that Bilal told me I would be released in 3-4 months."
"THE DEFENDANT BECAME OBSESSED BECAUSE HE COULDN'T HANDLE IT"
Büşra Kayhan, the daughter of the deceased Ercan Kayhan, said, "I was not there that day, I did not see the incident, I am complaining about the defendant and I want him to receive the highest penalty. After the incident, the defendant did not contact us in any way and did not express any remorse."
Her son stated, "My father was someone who helped people, so he always helped the defendant in other matters as well. But when he couldn't get anything done by the defendant, he withdrew his support. The defendant became obsessed because he couldn't handle it. He did not reach out to us after the incident."
"HE HAD DIED BY THE TIME I RETURNED"
Bilal Bilgin, who was a business partner of Ercan Kayhan and witnessed the incident, said, "Ercan and I had a de facto partnership in the business; I was preparing orders in the kitchen on the day of the incident. At that moment, the suspect Mustafa came into the kitchen. There was only one door, and the business had a total of two doors. The suspect entered the business through the closed door that day. When the suspect came to the kitchen, he directly reached for a knife from the counter. He approached me with the knife. At that moment, Ercan saw the suspect and came to us. He said, 'Did you come here again?' The suspect, upon seeing Ercan, left me and approached Ercan, attacking him with the knife. I did not see how many times he lunged with the knife, but Ercan had fallen to the ground. I tried to pull the suspect off him, but I couldn't. After that, I jumped outside and entered the nearby police station to report it; by the time I returned, he had died. Ercan did not insult the suspect or say anything; he only asked, 'Why did you come? Didn't I tell you not to come?' I did not see the suspect around the business between 2:30 PM and 3:30 PM on the day of the incident; I only saw him during the incident," he stated.
"THE DEFENDANT'S DEFENSES ARE COMPLETELY FALSE"
When asked about the suspect's statement, "Bilal dragged me into this, I wasn't going to kill," Bilal Bilgin replied, "The defendant's defenses are completely false. We have no problem with Ercan. The previous incident of the defendant breaking glass is true. Initially, we had filed a complaint, but later we withdrew it with Ercan's consent. When the suspect came at me with a knife, I escaped by going behind the counter. At that moment, Ercan had already arrived. I have not worked with the suspect for 3 years. He has no claim against me."
THE DEFENDANT WAS REMOVED FROM THE COURTROOM FOR A WHILE
The court removed the defendant Mustafa Can Gül from the courtroom after he interrupted while Bilal Bilgin was giving his statement. Gül was brought back to the courtroom after a while.
"BLOOD WAS FLOWING HEAVILY FROM ERCAN'S THROAT"
Witness Celal Can, who was a customer on the day of the incident, stated, "On the day of the incident, I went to the business with my fiancée Ayşegül Temel. Ercan was a family friend of ours. We chatted for a while, and when he got up, Ercan went to the area where the incident occurred. We saw the suspect come in, but we didn't pay attention because we didn't recognize him. The suspect went to the kitchen, chasing Bilal. I thought they were joking. Ercan went to intervene; Ayşegül said she saw a knife in the suspect's hand, and upon that, I ran to them. The suspect was holding Ercan by the neck and they were bent over. There was blood everywhere. Blood was flowing heavily from Ercan's throat. I immediately thought of the nearby gendarmerie station, and I drove there. I explained the situation to the duty officers. We immediately returned to the business; we saw the suspect at the outside exit of the business. The gendarmes took the suspect into custody. I saw the suspect cut Ercan's throat in a circular motion. He did this knowingly and willingly. I only saw Bilal being chased. I did not see the suspect with a knife while Bilal was being chased," he stated.
"I HEARD ERCAN SCREAMING IN PAIN"
Witness Ayşegül Temel stated, "On the day of the incident, I went to the business to eat with my fiancé Celal Can. We sat for a while. Then we placed our orders. Ercan went to the grill. At that moment, the suspect came in. I have been going to this place for about a year and a half. I had never seen the suspect here. I thought the suspect was one of the customers. Then I saw Ercan going to the kitchen with tongs in his hand. After a while, I heard Ercan screaming in pain, and when I looked over there, I saw the suspect and the victim at the entrance of the kitchen. The suspect was right behind the victim. As I approached, the suspect grabbed Ercan's head with his left arm; he cut the victim's throat with a knife. Ercan then fell to the ground. After that, the suspect seemed to do something again over the victim. But at that moment, I couldn't pay attention to the situation. I was one of those who called the ambulance," she said.
"HE CUT HIS THROAT SHOUTING ALLAHU AKBAR"
In another witness statement, it was said, "On the day of the incident, I went to the relevant business to eat. Everything was normal. After a while, we heard shouting. The sounds were coming from the kitchen area. The distance between us was about 20-30 meters. After the shouting, we headed towards the sound. At that moment, I saw the victim fall to the ground. Then the suspect cut the victim's throat shouting 'Allahu akbar.' Shortly after, gendarmerie teams arrived, and the incident ended that way," he stated.
THE HEARING WAS ADJOURNED
The court decided to continue the suspect's detention pending the autopsy report from the Forensic Medicine Institution and to hear the missing witnesses, and the hearing was adjourned to January 28, Wednesday.