05.01.2026 17:03
In the case regarding the death of 9-year-old Ebrar Aktaş, who lost her life after being trapped under a chair that fell from a freight elevator in Izmir, the detained company officials spoke in court. One of the detained defendants stated, "The girl was not there when the chair was descending. The girl came running as the chair was falling and it fell on her." Another said, "I saw Ebrar running. I tried to jump out of the car to catch her, but I couldn't make it in time."
On September 20, 2025, during the relocation of a house belonging to H. Y. in the Cüneytbey neighborhood of Menderes district in İzmir, a sofa from the freight elevator fell on Ebrar Aktaş, who was in the garden of the apartment. Aktaş, who was the niece of H. Y., was seriously injured. A health team was dispatched to the scene upon notification. After the first intervention, Ebrar Aktaş was taken to Menderes State Hospital, where she lost her life. Aktaş's funeral was held at Gaziemir Central Mosque and was buried at Doğançay Cemetery.
2 PEOPLE ARRESTED, 1 PERSON RELEASED As part of the investigation initiated after the incident, A. H. M., a Syrian national and employee of the company, along with the officials of the transportation company, Efecan Güngör and Mustafa Güngör, were taken into custody. After their procedures at the police station, the Güngör brothers were arrested while A. H. M. was released.
INDICTMENT PREPARED After the investigation, an indictment was prepared. It was stated that Efecan Güngör and Mustafa Güngör were doing the elevator-assisted house moving work under a company registered in their father's name, and that A. H. M. was working as a laborer with them. The indictment noted that the suspects came to the address on the day of the incident and set up the elevator system, that Efecan Güngör and A. H. M. were on the 5th floor of the apartment, while Mustafa Güngör was waiting below to load the materials coming from the elevator onto the truck. It emphasized that Efecan Güngör and A. H. M. loaded the sofa onto the elevator, and that the sofa fell on Ebrar, who was playing below when it was being lowered from the elevator platform, and she died in the hospital where she was taken.
DEFENSE OF THE DEFENDANTS: 'WIND' The statements of the defendants were also included in the indictment. It was noted that Mustafa Güngör stated that there was no document or license requirement for the installation and use of the elevator. The indictment included Güngör's statement that when Efecan and A. H. M. placed the three-seater sofa, a wind of such intensity that could be called a storm began, causing the sofa to lose its balance and fall from the basket. It was also included in the indictment that Güngör stated they warned that no one should be in the transport area. Güngör mentioned that he jumped from the truck with the reflex to catch the child but could not reach her and that they provided first aid.
Efecan Güngör, in his statement, said that they had unloaded a three-seater sofa before the incident and that while unloading the other one, the sofa lost its balance due to the wind. Güngör claimed that they took necessary precautions by securing it from every corner to prevent it from sliding while setting up the elevator, asserting that the incident was an accident and that they had no faults. It was noted that A. H. M. also stated that the sofa tipped over due to the wind.
"THEY DID NOT TAKE PRECAUTIONS" The expert report included in the indictment emphasized that a loading platform suitable for the dimensions of the three-seater sofa being transported was not used, that the loading platform was not set up properly, and that necessary precautions regarding the absence of people in the movement area of the loading platform were not taken. It was highlighted that no barriers were used to prevent passage in the area, and that Mustafa Güngör and Efecan Güngör, who did not take necessary occupational safety measures and did not transport the goods with a suitable freight elevator or secure the freight elevator safely to the ground, were the main factors in the occurrence of the accident. It was stated that A. H. M.'s careless and unprepared behavior contributed to the occurrence of the accident, while Ebrar had no effect.
"NO PRECAUTIONS WERE TAKEN BY THE SUSPECTS" When the entire investigation file was evaluated together, it was emphasized that there were faults and deficiencies in the installation and stabilization of the freight elevator within the scope of the transportation work carried out by the suspects. It was reported that the platform of the elevator was insufficient to safely transport the sofa that fell during the incident, and that no precautions were taken by the suspects to prevent human entry into the area under the platform. Although the suspects foresaw that such an incident could occur, it was emphasized that they did not want this outcome; however, it was highlighted that they caused Ebrar's death on the platform, and for this reason, a lawsuit was filed against the defendants for 'causing death by conscious negligence' with a request for imprisonment of 2 to 9 years.
The suspects appeared before the judge today at the 4th Criminal Court of First Instance. The arrested suspects Efecan Güngör and Mustafa Güngör attended the hearing via the Audio and Visual Information System (SEGBİS), while the unarrested suspect A. H. M. was not present. Additionally, the hearing was attended by the lawyers of the parties, the mother of the deceased child, Songül Lök, and members of the Teacher Saadet Child Abuse Prevention Association (UCİM).
During the hearing, arrested suspect Efecan Güngör stated, "There was no problem with the first sofa we unloaded. We saw the girl below when we were unloading the table. When we placed the second sofa, there was no one below. Suddenly, the wind picked up and the sofa slid a bit. At that moment, I shouted, 'The sofa is going to fall.' The girl came running as the sofa was falling and it fell on her. The girl was not there when the sofa was coming down. We went down and called an ambulance. We are very sorry for such an incident. I wish patience to her family. Who would want a 9-year-old girl to die? There is definitely nothing intentional. There was no strong wind before the incident, just a light breeze," he said.
"I TRIED TO CATCH HER BUT I COULDN'T REACH" Arrested suspect Mustafa Güngör stated, "When the table came down, Ebrar had come down. In fact, the manager's granddaughter had also come. The manager got angry at his granddaughter and took her away. I thought Ebrar had gone up while we were unloading the sofa. My brother shouted, 'The sofa is going to fall.' I saw Ebrar running. I jumped from the truck and tried to catch her, but I couldn't reach her. She was trapped under the sofa.
We made the first intervention and called the ambulance. Then the police took us to the station. We had no intention, I warned them several times. "We are very sorry, may God rest his soul, may He give patience to his family," he said.
CAME WITH HER DAUGHTER'S TOY DOLL AND PHOTO Songül Lök, who came to the hearing with her daughter's toy doll and photo, said, "They came to move my sister's house. They asked for breakfast, we prepared it. We had gathered all our belongings, and they had set up the elevator. They didn't warn us at all. After breakfast, they started working. My daughter wanted to see how the elevator worked. I didn't allow her. While I was gathering breakfast items in the kitchen, she had gone downstairs without me noticing. I heard a voice from outside. I heard them shouting, 'The child has fallen.' I never thought it could be my daughter and headed towards the balcony. When I heard my brother-in-law calling 'Ebrar,' I rushed downstairs. My daughter was covered in blood, and no one was helping. The defendants say they warned us, but no one warned us. I am complaining about the defendants," she stated.
Witnesses were also heard in the case. Songül Lök's brother-in-law Hakan Yılmaz stated that he was also downstairs during the incident but did not see Ebrar go down or the couch fall.
Another witness, Lök's sister Fadime Yılmaz, said, "My sister warned the people from the moving company about safety, but they said, 'It's our job, we can protect ourselves.' Ebrar was watching something on the phone at home. After a while, she said she was curious and went downstairs. When we went down, Ebrar's head was bleeding."
AN INSPECTION WILL BE CONDUCTED ON JANUARY 26 The prosecutor requested that the detention of the arrested defendants Efecan Güngör and Mustafa Güngör continue and that an inspection be conducted at the scene. The judge temporarily adjourned the hearing. Then, announcing the interim decision, the judge decided to conduct an inspection at the scene on January 26, to continue the detention of the defendants, and to issue an arrest warrant for the non-detained defendant A. H. M., who did not attend the hearing, and postponed the hearing.
After the hearing, a press statement was made in front of the courthouse. UCİM President Saadet Özkan said, "Ebrar has grown up with us since she was little. We lost our Ebrar, whom we protected even from our eyes. I can't find the words to say. Our child is not with us today. We cannot bring her back. The defendants express their condolences, but we say let them bring Ebrar back," he said.
Songül Lök's lawyer Candan Tekin also stated, "When we lost our friend's daughter, we realized that danger is right next to us. We cannot protect our children. The defendant, who is a worker, did not attend the hearing, and it was decided to arrest him upon our request. We will follow the case to the end. We will strive for it to be sent to the Heavy Penal Court. We believe that at least the possibility of intent should be discussed," he said.