04.01.2026 12:41
New information has emerged regarding a public official who is alleged to have covered up details in the case of university student Gülistan Doku, who has been missing since January 5, 2020, in Tunceli. Lawyer Ali Çimen stated that they will convey the relevant information to the prosecutor's office.
Since January 5, 2020, there has been no news of university student Gülistan Doku (21) from Tunceli. Her family's lawyer, Ali Çimen, stated, "At this stage, we have been contacted by one of the perpetrators, someone who has made a statement regarding their role in the cover-up of the Gülistan Doku case. Again, they repeatedly named that public official. A cover-up occurred here. They clearly stated that they were involved in the cover-up. We will forward this to the prosecutor's office."
NO NEWS SINCE JANUARY 5, 2020 Gülistan Doku, a second-year student in the Child Development Department at Munzur University, has not been heard from since she left the dormitory on January 5, 2020. Her family filed a missing person report with the Provincial Police Department on January 6. Investigations of the City Security Management System (KGYS) cameras along the route revealed that Doku was seen getting into a minibus, but it could not be determined where she got off.
LAST SIGNAL FROM MOBILE PHONE AT UZUNÇAYIR DAM LAKE Research eventually determined that Doku's mobile phone last sent a signal at the Yellow Saltuk Viaduct at Uzunçayır Dam Lake. Under the coordination and instruction of the then-Governor Tuncay Sonel, a team of 542 personnel, including teams from AFAD, the Naval Forces Command, the General Directorate of Security, the Gendarmerie General Command, and metropolitan municipalities from Ankara, Denizli, Diyarbakır, Istanbul, Izmir, Konya, Malatya, Manisa, and Kahramanmaraş, as well as NGOs, universities, and volunteers, conducted searches with 88 vehicles, 38 boats, 10 ROV devices, 6 drones, 4 sonars, and 3 search dogs. However, the search was concluded when no trace of Gülistan Doku was found.
BOYFRIEND TAKEN INTO CUSTODY In the investigation conducted by the Tunceli Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, Zeinal A., the boyfriend who was said to be the last person to have contact with Doku before her disappearance, was taken into custody in Alanya, Antalya, about 2 years after the incident. After a 4-hour statement, Zeinal A. was released under judicial control and a travel ban was imposed on him. A case was also opened against Zeinal A.'s father, E.Y., for disclosing personal information about Gülistan Doku that should have remained confidential on social media. The court sentenced E.Y. to 2.5 years in prison for unlawfully obtaining and disseminating personal data.
CASE REOPENED The Judges and Prosecutors Council (HSK) appointed Ebru Cansu, one of Turkey's three female chief prosecutors assigned to Tunceli with the June 2024 decree, who immediately began reviewing the Gülistan Doku case. Under Cansu's instruction, a special team was formed to take over the investigation. All KGYS footage and PTS records from the day before Doku's disappearance and the day she went missing were collected.
'IT WAS ALLEGED THAT GÜLISTAN COMMITTED SUICIDE' Ali Çimen, the family lawyer of Gülistan Doku, stated, "On January 24, 2020, a report was prepared. According to this report, an impression was created that an object had fallen into the water. It was claimed that Gülistan jumped into the water and thus committed suicide. As you know, research was conducted in Munzur Lake for 220 days following this report. It was evaluated that the object that fell into the water was Gülistan, and therefore it was considered that Gülistan committed suicide. During the later stages of this investigation, we objected to this. The case was examined by the National Criminal Bureau. A report was received at that time stating that there was no object that had fallen into the water. After this report, we requested that the case be treated as a homicide. However, our case remained inactive for a long time. In our case, the name of a high-ranking public official was mentioned from time to time. It was evaluated that there was an effort to cover up the investigation. It was even stated in the perpetrators' statements that they were advised by this official to leave the country," he said.
'THEY NAMED THAT PUBLIC OFFICIAL' Lawyer Çimen stated that they were contacted by someone who made a statement regarding their role in the cover-up of the Gülistan Doku case, saying, "Again, they repeatedly named that public official. A cover-up occurred here. They clearly stated that they were involved in the cover-up. We will forward this to the prosecutor's office. Due to the confidentiality of the case, we will not be able to share the information and documents in the case with you. However, this case is known to the public and closely followed by the public. Therefore, the responsibility to make a statement regarding this or to inform the public on this matter lies with the Tunceli Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. We request that the Tunceli Chief Public Prosecutor's Office take the necessary actions against the perpetrators as soon as possible and inform the public in this regard," he expressed.