23.05.2026 00:01
In the case of the Grand Kartal Hotel fire in Bolu, which killed 78 people and injured 133, the local court's sentences were upheld by the appellate court. The Sakarya Regional Court of Appeal rejected all objections to the record penalties and acquittals given to 32 defendants, including hotel owner Halit Ergül and public officials. The case file is being transferred to the Court of Cassation for a final decision.
A new turn has been taken in the judicial process regarding the hotel fire disaster that killed 78 people in Bolu. The sentences given by the local court in the case where 32 defendants, including the hotel owner, company executives, and municipal officials, were tried were found lawful and upheld by the appeals court. The 1st Criminal Chamber of the Sakarya Regional Court of Justice rejected all objections and appeals of the parties on the merits.
TOLL OF THE DISASTER: 78 DEAD, 133 INJURED
In the fire that broke out at the Grand Kartal Hotel on January 21, 2025, plunging the entire country into mourning, 78 people lost their lives and 133 were injured. The case, filed within the scope of the extensive investigation launched after the incident, was heard at the Bolu 1st Heavy Penal Court and the verdict hearing was held on October 31.
LIFE SENTENCES FOR 11 DEFENDANTS FOR CHILDREN, 24 YEARS EACH FOR ADULTS
The local court imposed very heavy penalties on the detained defendants found responsible for the disaster. Heavy penalties were imposed on the hotel owner Halit Ergül, board members Emine Murtezaoğlu Ergül, Elif Aras, and Ceyda Hacıbekiroğlu, hotel manager Zeki Yılmaz, Gazelle Hotel General Manager Ahmet Demir, hotel accounting manager Kadir Özdemir, hotel general manager Emir Aras, Bolu Deputy Mayor Sedat Gülener, Fire Department Acting Director Kenan Coşkun, and firefighter İrfan Acar.
The court panel sentenced these 11 defendants to 34 counts of life imprisonment for the crime of 'Causing death by eventual intent' for the 34 children who lost their lives. The same defendants were also sentenced to 44 counts of 24 years and 11 months each for the crime of 'Causing death by eventual intent' regarding the 44 adults who perished in the fire. These defendants also received various prison sentences for the crimes of 'Injury' and 'Damage to property.'
'CONSCIOUS NEGLIGENCE' SENTENCE FOR HOTEL EMPLOYEES AND PUBLIC OFFICIALS
The court convicted the other defendants in the case for the crime of 'Causing the death and injury of multiple people through conscious negligence.' Within this scope:
Grand Kartal Hotel accounting personnel Cemal Özer and Mehmet Salun received 22 years and 3 months each,
LPG installation maintenance workers Doğan Aydın and Muharrem Şen, and Occupational Safety Specialist Kübra Demir received 21 years, 4 months, and 15 days each,
Kitchen staff Reşat Bölük, hotel technical staff Tahsin Pekcan and Hüseyin Özer, inspection company official Ali Ağaoğlu, inspection company employee Aleyna Beşinci, officials of the company operating the café İbrahim Polat and İsmail Karagöz, former Special Provincial Administration Secretary General Sırrı Köstereli, Special Provincial Administration Deputy Secretary General Bünyamin Bal, former Special Provincial Administration License and Inspection Director Mehmet Özel, and Special Provincial Administration License and Inspection Director Yeliz Erdoğan received 21 years each,
Hotel technical staff Bayram Ütkü received 18 years,
Hotel receptionist Yiğithan Burak Çetin received 12 years in prison.
At the hearing, it was decided to arrest İbrahim Polat and İsmail Karagöz, while a judicial control measure of 'Not leaving the residence' was imposed on Doğan Aydın. Kitchen staff Faysal Yaver, occupational safety specialist Ece Kayacan, and kitchen worker Enver Öztürk were acquitted. It was decided to continue the detention of all defendants regarding the terrible incident, where the victims were learned to have set out from Mersin to go to the Siverek district of Şanlıurfa.
CHIEF PUBLIC PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE HAD APPEALED, FINDING SENTENCES LIGHT
The Bolu Chief Public Prosecutor's Office had filed an appeal to be submitted to the Presidency of the Criminal Chamber of the Regional Court of Justice after the local court's decision. The Chief Public Prosecutor's Office argued that hotel board members Emine Murtezaoğlu Ergül, her daughters Ceyda Hacıbekiroğlu and Elif Aras, and hotel manager Zeki Yılmaz, who were sentenced for the crime of 'Causing death by eventual intent,' should have been tried for the crime of 'Causing the death and injury of multiple people through conscious negligence.'
Furthermore, the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, which requested the punishment of acquitted kitchen staff Faysal Yaver and Occupational Safety Specialist Ece Kayacan for 'Conscious negligence,' objected to the decision, requesting that inspection company officials Ali Ağaoğlu and Aleyna Beşinci, and former and current Special Provincial Administration managers Sırrı Köstereli, Bünyamin Bal, Yeliz Erdoğan, and Mehmet Özel be punished for the crime of 'Causing the death and injury of multiple people through negligence.'
APPEALS COURT UPHELD THE DECISION AS IS: CASE GOES TO COURT OF CASSATION
The 1st Criminal Chamber of the Sakarya Regional Court of Justice, reviewing all these objections and the applications of the defense lawyers, ruled that there was no illegality regarding the procedure or merits in the decision of the Bolu 1st Heavy Penal Court. The chamber, deciding to 'Reject the appeal on the merits,' upheld the sentences given by the local court as is and decided to continue the 'Pre-trial detention' status of the detained defendants. Following this upholding decision by the appeals court, the case file will be sent to the Court of Cassation for the final decision.