10.10.2025 21:04
A verdict has been reached in the case regarding the tragedy in which two people lost their lives due to electric shock in İzmir. 30 individuals were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 4 to 10 years. However, an acquittal was granted for 9 defendants.
The final hearing of the case regarding the deaths of İnanç Öktemay and Özge Ceren Deniz, who were electrocuted in the street during a downpour in the Konak district of İzmir, was held. During the final hearing, 39 defendants, 9 of whom are in custody, made their last defenses at the İzmir 10th High Criminal Court. The court then announced its decision.
30 PEOPLE SENTENCED TO PRISON
15 of the defendants were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 8 years and 9 months to 10 years. The other 15 defendants received prison sentences between 4 years and 2 months and 5 years. Since there is a right to appeal for these defendants, no arrest warrant was issued. The court ruled for the acquittal of 9 defendants.
DEFENSES OF THE DETAINED DEFENDANTS
During the hearing, the detained defendants were given the floor. Detained defendant Mehmet Zeki Aytulun, the technical manager of İZSU, who requested acquittal, stated, "I have been in prison for 454 days, and every day I ask myself where I stand in this incident. If I am guilty, give me the heaviest sentence, but I am innocent."
Detained defendant Arif Kapuş also said, "There are managers and employers like me in this case. They are currently being tried without detention. I am not going to escape. I knew that my name was given to the prosecutor's office by İZSU when the accident happened, and I was expecting to be detained. I surrendered voluntarily. It is extremely concerning that there are names in this case who have directed the course of the case with false documents but are being tried without detention. I request my release and acquittal."
Detained defendant Fırat Akbay, a repair personnel for Gediz, defended himself by stating that he did nothing wrong. Akbay said, "I reported the malfunction I saw and took the necessary actions. If I encountered the same malfunction today, I would do the same thing again. I know that what I did was right and not lacking. I have a clear conscience. If it were tomorrow, I would do the same again, and I am proud of what I did."
WHAT HAPPENED?
In İzmir, due to the downpour that started around 18:00 on July 12, many streets were flooded. Özge Ceren Deniz, a student at İzmir Democracy University Faculty of Medicine, was electrocuted while trying to protect herself from the rain in a flooded street. İnanç Öktemay, who tried to save her, was also electrocuted and collapsed. Deniz and Öktemay lost their lives in the hospital where they were taken. İnanç Öktemay was buried in İzmir, while Özge Ceren Deniz was buried in Osmaniye.
EXPERT REPORT
In the report prepared by a five-member expert committee, it was determined that Deniz and Öktemay had no personal fault in the occurrence of the incident. The report assessed that the incident was foreseeable and preventable, and there was no element of inevitability. Accordingly, it was concluded that there was no extraordinary natural event that could not be foreseen or prevented in the occurrence of the incident. It was determined that a series of negligence and technical faults, along with chain fault elements developing outside of Deniz and Öktemay, caused the incident. The expert report stated that neither of the two institutions present at the site of the incident took protective and preventive measures.