17.09.2025 13:42
In Diyarbakır, 40-year-old Mehmet Hüseyin Aydemir spent 8 years of his life in prison for a crime he did not commit. In 2016, he was sentenced to 60 years in prison for "Robbery" and "Injury" related to an incident at a market. However, upon retrial, it was determined that there were 15 significant differences between him and the person who actually committed the crime, leading to his acquittal. The victim has filed for 17 million lira in compensation.
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In Diyarbakır, in 2016, regarding an incident reflected in security cameras at a market, Mehmet Hüseyin Aydemir was detained on charges of 'Robbery', 'Deprivation of liberty', and 'Intentional injury'.
"THEY MAY HAVE MISTAKEN ME, I DO NOT ACCEPT THE ALLEGATIONS" Aydemir stated in his testimony, "I absolutely do not accept any of the charges against me; I was in Muş on the date of the incident. I went to Muş for work purposes, and I sign at the police station in Muş on Wednesdays, Fridays, Sundays, and Mondays for my supervised release measure. I was also in Muş on May 28, 2016. I do not know why the complainants identified me in the photo identification and live identification records. They may have mistaken me for someone else; I do not accept any of the charges against me," he said.
HE WAS SENTENCED TO 60 YEARS IN PRISON As a result of the trial, with security camera footage and witness statements, Aydemir received a total of 60 years in prison for the crimes of 'Simple injury', 'Purchasing, carrying, or possessing ammunition with unlicensed firearms', 'Robbery with a weapon at the workplace', and 'Depriving a person of their liberty using force, threat, or deception'.
15 DISTINCT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE SUSPECT AND THE ACCUSED REPORTED 3 TIMES Aydemir's sentence was later upheld by the Court of Cassation. While in prison, Aydemir, who insisted on his innocence, went on a hunger strike in 2023. In response, his lawyer İhsan Çelik sent the footage and Aydemir's photographs to the Active Criminal Laboratory in Ankara. In the report dated November 28, 2023, it was stated, "In the examination of the images in question, a comparison was made, and it was found that the person involved in the crime is not the same person as the accused. While there are physical similarities between the individuals in broad terms, detailed examinations revealed 15 highly distinctive differences, and it was determined that the individuals compared are not the same person, as there should be at least 5 parameters for a high degree of distinction, but 15 parameters resulted in the conclusion that the individuals are not the same person."
HE WAS RELEASED In the retrial, in the report dated January 11, 2024, from the Van Gendarmerie Criminal Laboratory, it was stated, "In the facial comparison examination conducted for the comparison of the individuals, it was indicated that the person mentioned in the images and the person identified as Mehmet Hüseyin Aydemir are likely to be different individuals." Following this, Aydemir was released on January 18, 2024.
HE WAS ACQUITTED AFTER COURT OBSERVATION In the forensic report dated July 29, 2024, regarding Aydemir, it was stated, "The visual samples belonging to Person No. 1 and the visual samples belonging to Mehmet Hüseyin Aydemir showed partial differences in their comparisons." In the hearing held on December 26, 2024, after the court's observations regarding the accused, it was decided that "The structure of the accused's nose does not match the nose structure of the person reflected in the security camera as the perpetrator, and the structure of the accused's ears does not match the ear structure of the person in the images. While the facial features and body weight of the accused and the person in the images resemble each other, it was observed that the facial features and characteristic marks such as the nose and ears do not match. Therefore, based on the new situation and expert reports, it was determined that the accused did not commit the alleged crimes, and the previous judgment of our court was annulled, leading to the acquittal of the accused," it was stated. This judgment was finalized on January 7, 2025.
"WE CONFESSED 10 TIMES, THE 11TH WAS ACCEPTED" Lawyer İhsan Çelik filed a compensation claim with the Ministry of Justice's Compensation Commission in March, seeking a total of 17 million TL, including 7 million TL for material damages and 10 million TL for moral damages, on the grounds that his client was deprived of his freedom for 8 years. Lawyer Çelik stated, "The incident occurred on May 28, 2016. It was a case of a market being robbed and some citizens present in the market being robbed. Subsequently, the perpetrator fled the scene after committing the robbery and injured the vehicle owner. When we became involved in this case as defense counsel in 2018, our first request was that the images of the perpetrator should be compared with the images of our client. Unfortunately, the court rejected this request as unfounded, and our client was sentenced to approximately 60 years in prison based on the identifications of the victims in the market. Unfortunately, our requests were not fulfilled in the appellate court and the relevant criminal department of the Court of Cassation. This was the first process. We objected to the detention of our client 10 times for a retrial. The 11th objection was accepted."
After the Supreme Court's approval decision, the court ruling regarding the client became final, followed by a process where the client persistently continued to submit petitions for retrial. Unfortunately, at the end of these processes, their requests were rejected. In response, the client went on a hunger strike against the severity of the time they would serve for a crime they did not commit," he said.
"A 17 MILLION COMPENSATION APPLICATION HAS BEEN MADE" Following the client's hunger strike, Çelik stated that they applied to the Active Criminal Department in Ankara for the comparison of the images as a result of their research, saying, "We learned that they prepare healthy reports in such cases and conduct the necessary comparison processes. Upon our application, a very detailed report was prepared. As stated in this report, there are 5 different parameters necessary for determining that the individuals are not the same person in the person and image comparison process, but we identified 15 distinguishing parameters in the existing file. Due to these distinguishing reasons, an application was made to the court for a retrial, determining that the client was not the same person as the perpetrator. The court also applied to the Van Gendarmerie Criminal Department for the confirmation of our application and the criminal report we submitted as an annex. Upon the determination in the criminal report prepared by the Van Gendarmerie Criminal Regional Department that the perpetrator was not the client, it was decided to suspend the execution regarding the client and to release them. The detention process that started in 2016 resulted in the decision for their release in 2024 after the evaluation of the retrial. In terms of the delivery of these reports, a new correspondence was also written to the Istanbul Forensic Medicine Institution's Information Expertise Department. A similar evaluation was made in the response letter received. Following this, a hearing was opened, and the trial continued, with the court panel making an assessment by comparing the existing images with the client's current image. As a result of these evaluations and trials, it was revealed that the client was not the relevant market robber, and a unanimous decision of acquittal was made. This was a process of approximately 8 years of deprivation of freedom. A compensation application of 17 million was made, consisting of 7 million in material damages and 10 million in moral damages. Our requests have not yet been evaluated. We are waiting for the result," he stated.