16.08.2026 10:51
Following the death of renowned obstetrician Dr. Özlem Gültekin, who passed away at the age of 48, a joint statement was issued by her husband Erhan Çelik and the lawyers of the Gültekin family. In the statement, which reacted to allegations of suspicious death and reports in the press, it was emphasized that the couple was in the final stage of an agreement on a consensual divorce.
The echoes of the death of Özlem Gültekin, an obstetrician well known to the television world who was buried in tears yesterday in her hometown of Izmir, continue. According to allegations, Gültekin, who underwent surgery a week ago due to a mass in her chest, administered anesthesia to herself when her pain increased on the day of the incident. In the incident, which was deemed suspicious and an investigation was launched, the report expected from the Forensic Medicine Institute is awaited to determine the definitive cause of death.
JOINT STATEMENT FROM LAWYERS AND FAMILIES
Following the death, after the problems Özlem Gültekin had experienced in the past with the famous TV personality Erhan Çelik, from whom she was in the process of divorcing, were brought back to the agenda in the press, lawyers from both sides issued a joint written statement. In the statement made under the signatures of lawyers Ahmet Avşar and Işıl Ay Karataş Tunca, a harsh reaction was shown to the allegations in the media.
"THEY WERE AT THE FINAL STAGE OF AGREEMENT ON MUTUAL DIVORCE"
In the joint statement, details regarding the couple's divorce process were included, and it was stated that the unfounded news in the media deeply hurt the grieving family:
"We are following with great sadness the inhuman and conscience-less news and comments published after the death of our daughter, our sister, the former wife and the mother of our six-year-old child, Özlem Gültekin Çelik. We find it beneficial for the owners of these broadcasts, which do not even give us a chance to experience our grief and do not respect any humanitarian or conscientious boundaries, to first know some facts. Above all, it should be known that Özlem Gültekin Çelik and Erhan Çelik were at the final stage of agreement on a mutual divorce. We see that the news and comments, which completely ignore an innocent child who has just lost his mother at the age of six and his future that needs to be protected, are becoming increasingly ugly and unacceptable."
"WE DO NOT ACCEPT THE TARGETING OF THE FATHER"
In the statement, where the re-serving of untrue allegations and past footage was condemned, the targeting of Erhan Çelik was opposed with these words:
"In particular, we do not accept the re-serving of certain images and content regarding other past disputes between the parties, by associating them with the painful event we are experiencing today, and the targeting of our child's father based on the phrase 'suspicious death' without any concrete basis. Likewise, we reject allegations such as the presence of certain drugs that are absolutely untrue. These broadcasts, made without any concrete basis, not only harm the living; they also clearly constitute disrespect to the memory and moral personality of our beloved Özlem, who is a part of us. The examination of a death by judicial authorities does not, by itself, mean that there is a criminal or unusual situation underlying the death."
LEGAL PROCESS INITIATED
In the final part of the statement, it was announced that legal initiatives have been initiated through the lawyers of both families against the unfounded news made during this sensitive period when a six-year-old child lost his mother:
"We remind everyone that in such a heavy period, especially when a six-year-old child has lost his mother, the irreparable consequences that broadcasts targeting the child's father without any legal or material basis could create must be considered by everyone. We demand an end to the production of speculation over our shared grief, the declaration of people as guilty in advance, and the disregard of the future of a six-year-old child for the sake of ratings or interaction. Before laws and legal sanctions, we expect to be allowed to experience our grief in the name of humanity and conscience."