Scandalous defense from the contractor of the building that claimed the lives of 44 people in the earthquake: My imprisonment is of no benefit to anyone.

Scandalous defense from the contractor of the building that claimed the lives of 44 people in the earthquake: My imprisonment is of no benefit to anyone.

10.07.2024 01:30

The contractor of the building that collapsed in the earthquake in Kahramanmaraş and caused the death of 44 people, Hasan Çam, defended himself in court. Hasan Çam, who is also the contractor of the site and the owner of the market on the ground floor, stated that he does not understand construction and is a primary school graduate, saying, "Being in custody is not beneficial to anyone. I want to be tried without being detained. I have no suspicion of escape, I have to be at work. I have been in custody for 17 months and my victimization has reached its peak. I request my release."

In the trial where Hasan Çam, the contractor of the site that collapsed in the earthquake in Kahramanmaraş on February 6th, causing the death of 44 people, is being tried for the crime of "causing death and injury by conscious negligence" and faces up to 22.5 years in prison, he stated that hundreds of people work in his markets and being in custody is not beneficial to anyone, saying "I have to be at work. I have been in custody for 17 months and my victimization has reached its peak. I request my release."

The 4th hearing of the trial, in which 3 of the 6 defendants were in custody and 6 people were being tried for the crime of "causing death and injury by conscious negligence" with a sentence of up to 22.5 years, was held regarding the collapse of Said Bey Site, where 44 people lost their lives in the earthquakes that occurred in Kahramanmaraş on February 6, 2023. In the 4th Heavy Penal Court, the defendants without custody, site supervisors Murat Kaş (39) and Halil İbrahim US (34), detained building inspection company owner Halil Yıldız (55), as well as the relatives of the deceased and their lawyers were present in the courtroom. Contractor Hasan Çam (53) and static project and implementation inspection officer Yavuz Kaygısız (55) attended the hearing via the SEGBİS system from the prisons where they were detained, while Melike Yıldız (33), the control officer of the building inspection company without custody, attended from the courthouse in her city.

Scandalous defense from the contractor of the building that became the grave of 44 people in the earthquake: My being in custody is not beneficial to anyone
Hasan Çam

"THE APPROVING AUTHORITIES ARE THE MUNICIPALITIES"

The first defense was made by the owner of the building inspection company, Halil Yıldız. Yıldız, who denied the accusations, claimed that the core samples were not taken in accordance with the regulations, saying, "I request the testimony of the experts who took the core samples to be heard in the trial. Because the core samples were not taken according to the expert guide. While there were 2 basement floors that had less damage, especially the places where the excavators took from one side and threw to the other side were chosen to take the core samples. I am looking for intent. In addition, as building inspectors, we submit all our controls to the approval of the municipality and they come and inspect and approve them. The approving authorities are the municipalities, I request my release."

"MY BEING IN CUSTODY IS NOT BENEFICIAL TO ANYONE"

Hasan Çam, who is also the contractor of the site and the owner of the market on the ground floor, denied the accusations and requested his release. Çam, who stated that he does not understand construction and is a primary school graduate, defended himself as follows: "My profession is food retailing, I do not understand anything about construction, I am a primary school graduate. I gave the construction work to architects, engineers, and building inspection companies who know the job. As Hasan Çam, I only financed the building. I have suffered great material and spiritual losses. I have hundreds of employees in the markets I own. My being in custody is not beneficial to anyone. The trial will certainly continue and I want to be tried without custody. I have no suspicion of escape, I have to be at work. I have been in custody for 17 months and my victimization has reached its peak. I request my release."

Scandalous defense from the contractor of the building that became the grave of 44 people in the earthquake: My being in custody is not beneficial to anyone

THE TRIAL WAS ADJOURNED UNTIL SEPTEMBER 27

The other defendants also denied the accusations and stated that they repeated their previous defenses in the previous hearings. The court board decided to continue the detention of the defendants in custody and adjourned the hearing until September 27, as the file sent to the expert for a new report, according to the decision taken in the previous hearing, did not arrive.

"WE DEMAND THE IMMEDIATE INCLUSION OF PUBLIC OFFICIALS IN THE CASE"

Tuba Erdemoğlu, who lost her mother, father, brother, and grandfather in the collapsed building, stated that they are holding a justice vigil in front of the courthouse and said that they want justice to be served. Erdemoğlu, who expressed that they have been in search of justice for 17 months and have not been able to experience their grief, continued as follows: "Our only concern is justice, we have no other expectations than justice. Despite 17 months have passed, not a single public official has been tried in the Said Bey Site case. We do not accept this. We want the necessary permissions to be issued by the Ministry of Interior as soon as possible and for them to be included in the investigations. I lost 4 members of my family in the earthquake, I took them out from under the concrete piles and buried them, but the culprits are not receiving the punishment they deserve, they are being tried for negligence. Our case is not a case to be tried for negligence, Said Bey Site is a case to be tried for possible intent. We demand the immediate inclusion of public officials who were negligent in the incident in the case."

In order to provide you with a better service, we position cookies on our site. Your personal data is collected and processed within the scope of KVKK and GDPR. For detailed information, you can review our Data Policy / Disclosure Text. By using our site, you agree to our use of cookies.', '