15.02.2025 15:14
In the earthquakes on February 6, 2023, the only building that collapsed in the Nizip district of Gaziantep, the Furkan Apartment, became a grave for 51 people. A new indictment was prepared due to allegations regarding "column cutting" related to the apartment. In a witness statement, it was said, "I saw Coşkun Şahin cutting the column and I warned him. We argued about it. Despite my repeated warnings, he said he would cut the column to expand the service area."
In the decision hearing on July 19, 2024, regarding the Furkan Apartment, the only building that collapsed in the Nizip district of Gaziantep during the earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş on February 6, 2023, engineer Yılmaz Şahin Yurtyapan was sentenced to 16 years and 8 months, while the other defendants Faik and Eyüp Öğüt and Nejdet Alpay were acquitted due to lack of evidence. It was ruled that the files of the fugitive defendants Abdullah Devrim Sever and his brother Hasan Hüseyin Sever would be separated, and a criminal complaint regarding the cutting of columns was filed.
NEW INDICTMENT ON THE ALLEGATION OF "COLUMN CUTTING"
Following the criminal complaint regarding the cutting of columns, an investigation was conducted by the Nizip Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. The prosecutor's office completed the investigation against Coşkun Şahin and his brother Ömer Şahin, who worked at the car dealership on the ground floor of the apartment, and prepared a new indictment requesting up to 22 years and 6 months of imprisonment for the defendants without detention for the crime of "causing the death and injury of multiple people with conscious negligence." The prepared indictment was accepted by the Nizip Heavy Penal Court.
"I SAW ŞAHİN CUTTING THE COLUMN"
The new indictment also included the expert report from the previous case file, which stated that column S11 was cut from the basement floor, while the statements of the witness M.S.Ç. regarding the column cutting drew attention. The witness M.S.Ç. emphasized that he witnessed the column cutting incident in the basement of the building, stating, "In 2001, I saw Coşkun Şahin doing construction inside the service area. Since I was the sales manager at that time, I was also involved in the maintenance of the vehicles coming to the service. I saw Coşkun Şahin cutting the column and warned him. We had a discussion about it. Despite my repeated warnings, when he said he would cut the column to expand the service area, I reported the situation to my boss Nejdet Alpay, but when he did nothing, I had to remain silent."
"SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE OBTAINED"
In the newly prepared indictment, it was emphasized that the statements and the investigation were consistent with the expert report and witness statements, stating, "Since an indictment had previously been prepared regarding Nejdet Alpay on the same issue, a new indictment was not prepared, but it was understood that sufficient evidence had been obtained to prepare an indictment regarding the other suspects for causing the building to collapse by cutting the columns and committing the alleged crime as a result."