12.11.2026 00:10
The Court of Cassation overturned the aggravated life imprisonment sentence given to the defendant on the grounds that he caused the death of his pregnant wife, Semra Aysal, by pushing her from the rocks they had gone to for taking photographs in the Fethiye district of Muğla, and decided to release him. The defendant's lawyer argued that his client did not commit the crime of intentional killing, while stating that the 6-year detention period had ended.
In the case heard at the Fethiye 1st High Criminal Court, the verdict was appealed after the defendant received an aggravated life sentence for the crime of "premeditated killing of a close relative."
RELEASE DECISION FROM THE COURT OF CASSATION
The General Criminal Assembly of the Court of Cassation decided to release defendant Hakan Aysal during the appeal review stage of the case file. Defendant Aysal's lawyer, Mehmet Buğra Çiçek, argued to an AA reporter that his client did not commit the crime of intentional killing of his spouse.
Çiçek noted that these matters were explicitly stated in the dissenting opinion written by the presiding judge in the trial in Fethiye, in the dissenting opinions written by two judges of the 1st Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation, and in the objection of the Office of the Chief Public Prosecutor of the Court of Cassation, and he stated the following:
HE SPENT 6 YEARS IN PRISON
"The General Criminal Assembly of the Court of Cassation, in its decision issued as of today, has decided to release my client. This release decision by the General Criminal Assembly is clear evidence that the unjust aggravated life sentence imposed on my client has been overturned. My client's unjust detention of 6 years, about 4 of which he spent alone in a cell, has ended as of today. On behalf of myself and my client, I thank the Turkish judiciary for this fair and correct decision, even if late."
WHAT HAD HAPPENED?
Semra Aysal had died together with her 7-month-old unborn baby after falling from the rocks while having her photograph taken in Butterfly Valley on June 19, 2018. In the investigation launched after her death was deemed suspicious, Hakan Aysal, who was determined to have taken out personal accident insurance worth 400,000 lira for his wife shortly before the incident, was taken into custody and was arrested on November 21, 2020, on the allegation that he caused her death by pushing her.
In the indictment prepared by the Fethiye Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, an aggravated life sentence was sought for Aysal, who was alleged to have committed the crime of "premeditated killing of a close relative." The court panel, by a majority vote, sentenced the defendant to aggravated life imprisonment, whereas the presiding judge noted a dissent in favor of the defendant's acquittal.