19.10.2026 18:03
In the case of 16-year-old Hiranur Nilgün Aygar, who died last year in Mersin after being shot in the head with a gun in a car, the appellate court sentenced her boyfriend Hüseyin Arda Şark, whom the first-instance court had sentenced to life imprisonment, to aggravated life imprisonment for qualified intentional homicide. The other two defendants were each sentenced to 4 months in prison for destroying evidence. Father Murat Aygar said he would take the case to a higher court.
In the case of Hiranur Nilgün Aygar (16), who was shot in the head with a pistol in a car in Mersin, the murder defendant Hüseyin Arda Şark (20) was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment, while the other defendants Mustafa Zeybek and Nazmi Çetin were each sentenced to 4 months in prison. Hiranur's father Murat Aygar, stating that he would object to the verdict, said he would take the case file to a higher court.
The incident occurred on August 31 last year in the Toroslar district. Hiranur Nilgün Aygar, who was shot in the head with a pistol, died at Mersin City Hospital, where she was taken by car in a critically injured condition. Her boyfriend Hüseyin Arda Şark, who took Aygar to the hospital, said in his statement to hospital police, "Hira has been my girlfriend for about 2 months. We had gone to a soldier's send-off celebration together. At that time, I fired into the air with the pistol I had with me. On the way back, while returning home with my friends Nazmi Çetin and Mustafa Zeybek, we stopped at a market on Sebahattin Çakmakoğlu Street in Akbelen Neighborhood. We got out of the vehicle. At that time, Hira, who remained in the vehicle, took the pistol and shot herself in the head," he said.
HIS SECOND STATEMENT CHANGED EVERYTHING
After Mustafa Zeybek and Nazmi Çetin also gave contradictory statements, teams from the Homicide Bureau, which launched an investigation, detained the 3 suspects. In his second statement, Şark said that, in jest, he placed the pistol he thought was unloaded against his girlfriend's forehead and pulled the trigger. Hüseyin Arda Şark, stating that they did not go to the hospital immediately after the incident, recounted that they first left Hiranur Aygar in a wooded area, then picked her up again and took her to the hospital. During the teams' search at the specified location, blood traces were found. After autopsy procedures, Aygar's body, which was handed over to her relatives, was buried. All 3 suspects were arrested by the court they were brought before.
LIFE SENTENCE AT FIRST INSTANCE
At the hearing of the case held on May 8 at the Mersin 5th High Criminal Court, detained defendants Hüseyin Arda Şark, Mustafa Zeybek, and Nazmi Çetin attended via the Audio and Visual Information System (SEGBİS) from the prison where they were held. Lawyers and Hiranur's mother and father were also present in the courtroom. Asked for his last word, Şark said, "There was absolutely no argument between us. I did not harm her, I did not shoot. I have no reason to shoot. I request my release." The other defendants, Mustafa Zeybek and Nazmi Çetin, also argued that they had nothing to do with the incident and requested their release. The court panel sentenced Hüseyin Arda Şark to life imprisonment and decided to continue his detention. The other defendants, Zeybek and Çetin, were each sentenced to 4 months in prison for the crime of 'Destroying, concealing, or altering evidence of a crime.' The court panel decided to release the 2 defendants.
After the Aygar family objected to the verdict, the case was taken to the appellate court. The court decided to reconsider the case file with a hearing. At the hearing held in Adana, the prosecutor requested that Hüseyin Arda Şark be sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment and that the previous sentences for the other defendants Mustafa Zeybek and Nazmi Çetin remain unchanged. The court postponed the hearing.
APPELLATE COURT AGGRAVATED THE SENTENCE
At the final hearing held today at the 18th Criminal Chamber of the Adana Regional Court of Justice, Hüseyin Arda Şark was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for the crime of 'qualified intentional killing' and to 2 years in prison for the crime of 'possessing an unlicensed firearm.' The defendants not in detention, Mustafa Zeybek and Nazmi Çetin, were each sentenced to 4 months in prison for the crime of 'destroying, concealing, or altering evidence of a crime.' Following the verdict, Hiranur's father Murat Aygar stated that he would take the case file to a higher court and continue his pursuit of justice.