10.05.2025 13:11
A family has filed a criminal complaint regarding 9-year-old E.Ç., who has autism and attends a private sports academy in the Çorlu district of Tekirdağ, after footage showed their trainer E.G. pushing and slapping the child. The family has initiated legal proceedings concerning the incident.
In the Çorlu district of Tekirdağ, E.Ç. (9), an autistic child attending a private sports academy, was pushed and slapped in the face by his female trainer E.G. when he was unable to perform the requested movement. Those moments were accidentally sent to the family by E.G., and a criminal complaint was filed against the trainer.
Özkan Çavuş and Cevriye Çavuş, who work in a factory in Çorlu, sent their autistic son E.Ç. to a private sports academy for training two years ago. From time to time, the academy recorded E.Ç.'s progress while he was exercising and sent the footage to the family. On April 26, the family requested new footage from E.G., the trainer of A.Ç., to see their son's development. Upon reviewing the mistakenly sent footage, the couple saw that while their child was exercising on a treadmill and unable to throw the ball given to him into a funnel, he was pushed and slapped in the face by trainer E.G. The family went to the Çorlu Chief Public Prosecutor's Office with the footage and filed a criminal complaint against trainer E.G.
"HE DENIED SAYING HE DIDN'T HIT" Özkan Çavuş, stating that his son was diagnosed with autism at the age of 1, said, "We were having our son receive movement training at a special sports center. The sports instructor would send us videos of our child at various times when he showed progress. The last time we went on April 26, he said our child was showing progress and that he would send us a video. About 10 days later, I asked the instructor for the video. When I reviewed the video he sent, I noticed that he shook my son and slapped him in the face at the end. I called the instructor and told him I didn't want to continue with him, and I asked him why he hit my son. He denied hitting him. He told me, 'There is a longer version of that video.' I replied, 'Everything is quite clear in the video, I see it.' Later, the instructor started calling again, but I didn't answer the phone.
"WE DEMAND THAT NECESSARY ACTIONS BE TAKEN" Özkan Çavuş stated, "This time he started to harass me with voice messages. About 2 hours later, a close relative called, saying that the instructor made a mistake and that we could sit down and talk to solve the problem. I told him that this issue could not be resolved by sitting down and talking, but could be resolved in the judicial process, and that I would use whatever legal rights we have. We filed a criminal complaint with the Çorlu Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. We submitted our petition to the Ministry of National Education. We demand that necessary actions be taken," he said.
"THIS WILL NOT BE COVERED UP" Mother Cevriye Çavuş also said, "We are working very hard for our children to take a step forward. I am really very sad, but unfortunately, we will not let this issue go, it will not be covered up like this. What is done to my child today can be done to someone else's child tomorrow," she said. Trainer E.G., who was reached by phone by DHA reporter, stated that he would make a statement on the matter later through his lawyers.