30.01.2025 22:10
The aggravated life sentence imposed on Gökhan Çatbaş, who killed his ex-girlfriend Edanur Çoban in Kayseri, was overturned by the Kayseri Regional Court of Appeals due to procedural deficiencies. As the defendant appeared before the judge again, a witness's statement regarding the incident drew attention, as they used the words, "Die, you scoundrel, how could you do this to me?"
Last year, Edanur Çoban, who worked as a waitress in a restaurant in the Anbar neighborhood of the Melikgazi district in Kayseri, was shot by her ex-boyfriend Gökhan Çatbaş while she was on her way home after work. Çoban collapsed to the ground as Çatbaş fired a shotgun, and he fled the scene. Edanur Çoban lost her life following the attack.
The fleeing suspect was captured and arrested at the entrance of Avanos district in Nevşehir.
HE WAS SENTENCED TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT
A case was opened against Gökhan Çatbaş for 'Intentional Murder Against a Woman' with a request for aggravated life imprisonment. During the verdict hearing of the case held on September 3 last year at the Kayseri 2nd High Criminal Court, the detained defendant Gökhan Çatbaş, Edanur Çoban's mother Tuğba Çoban, father Akın Çoban, and their lawyers were present in the courtroom. Lawyers from the Ministry of Family and Social Services also intervened in the case.
The court panel sentenced the defendant Gökhan Çatbaş to aggravated life imprisonment for 'Intentional Murder of a Woman with Premeditation.' The panel did not apply any mitigating factors for the defendant.
THE COURT OF APPEAL ANNULLED THE DECISION
The defendant Çatbaş's lawyer appealed the decision and brought the case to the Kayseri Regional Court of Justice. After reviewing the case, the 1st Criminal Chamber of the Kayseri Regional Court of Justice stated that one of the witnesses was heard by a deputy judge (appointed judge) and that witness statements should be taken in a panel, thus there was a procedural deficiency in the case, and annulled the decision, sending the case back to the local court.
RETRIAL
After the Court of Appeal's annulment decision, the defendant Gökhan Çatbaş appeared before the Kayseri 2nd High Criminal Court again. In the case, the defendant Çatbaş, the father of the deceased Edanur Çoban, Akın Çoban, and their lawyers were present. Father Çoban stated that he was a complainant, saying, "I trust the great Turkish justice." The witness mentioned in the Court of Appeal's annulment decision was heard in the presence of the panel this time.
"HE WAS GASPING WHEN I GOT TO HIM"
A witness, S.T., who stated that he lived in the area where the incident occurred, said, "When I heard the gunshot, I went out to the balcony. The girl was running away. The suspect was shooting at her from behind. The girl fell to the ground. While she was lying on the ground, he shot at her again. Finally, he shot her in the head. He waited by her head and shouted, 'Die, you bastard, how could you do this to me?' and cursed. He even kicked her. He had dropped the cartridge on the ground. He picked up the cartridge from the ground and shot at her head. The neighbors told me, 'Get inside, don't interfere.' Then I shouted from the balcony. When I went downstairs, he had fled. When I got to the girl, she was gasping for breath," he said.
After the witness statements, the defendant Gökhan Çatbaş defended himself, saying, "I never said 'Die, you bastard.' I didn't kick her." The court panel decided to continue the detention of the defendant Çatbaş with an interim decision and postponed the hearing to address the deficiencies.