They killed him in the middle of the street and recorded the moment of the murder.

Hakan Turan (34), who was engaged in trade in Mersin, was killed in the middle of the street, and in the case regarding the recording of those moments with a mobile phone, one of the defendants who fired the gun, Berkant Özgündüz (20), said in the first hearing, "We received 45,000 TL as expenses, including the car rental fee."

"THE INSTRUCTION CAME FROM RUSSIA VIA TEXT MESSAGE"

In the first hearing of the case at the Mersin 9th High Criminal Court, detained defendants Berkant Ö. and Hasan K. attended along with their lawyers.

Berkant Ö., who used the weapon, claimed in his defense during the hearing that their intention was not to kill Hakan Turan but to injure him. He explained that while he was having dinner with Hasan K. at a restaurant in Istanbul, he received a message on Hasan K.'s mobile phone from a person named Okan Ç. Berkant Ö. stated, "The message said, 'Is there anyone who can shoot someone in the foot?' Hasan said, 'I can do it.' When Okan Ç. refused this, Hasan told me. I said I would do it too. At first, Hasan did not accept my offer, but then he was convinced. About 10 or 15 days after this conversation, we obtained the weapon. Then we wanted to rent a car, but since my driver's license was only one year old, no one would rent a car to me. So, we rented a car in the name of a friend and came to Mersin, where Hakan Turan lived," he said.

"WE FOLLOWED HIM FOR 2 DAYS"

Berkant Ö. stated that they followed businessman Hakan Turan for 2 days in Mersin before carrying out the armed attack, saying, "Okan Ç. had informed us about Hakan Turan's work and home locations. Hasan was supposed to wait by the wall and record a video, while I would wait by Hakan Turan's car. I would shoot when he approached me. When I came out from behind the car, I saw Hakan Turan. He seemed far away; I couldn't see far. In fact, he was only about 5-6 meters away from me. I was using a gun for the first time; I only used it on the day of the incident. I fired four shots, thinking the first bullet did not hit. After that, the gun recoiled, and I couldn't control it, so I continued firing. When Hakan Turan reached for his waist, I continued firing. Hakan Turan took a step or two back and then fell to the ground," he said.

"WE RECORDED THE FOOTAGE TO SHOW TO OKAN Ç. WE WERE GOING TO ESCAPE TO RUSSIA"

Berkant Ö. explained that they recorded the mobile phone footage of the moment Hakan Turan was shot to show to Okan Ç., who had given them the instructions, saying, "We received 45,000 TL as expenses, including the car rental fee. First, 25,000 TL came, then 20,000 TL. While we were on the road, Hasan threw the gun out of the car near the highway. We learned on the road that Hakan Turan had died. Okan Ç. had sent a message to Hasan saying, 'You killed the guy, where did you shoot him, the guy is dead.' We were going to escape abroad to Russia, where Okan Ç. was staying, via Azerbaijan. After Hakan Turan's death, Okan Ç. said, 'Come directly to Iğdır, I will help you.' I am very sorry for this incident, and I apologize to his family," he said.

RECORDED THE MOMENT OF THE MURDER ON A MOBILE PHONE

The other detained defendant, Hasan K., who recorded the moment of the murder with a mobile phone, stated in his testimony that they did not come to Mersin with the intention to kill, but rather to injure.

Hasan K. said that while he was with the other suspect Berkant Ö., Okan Ç. sent him a message on his mobile phone, using the following words: "In the message, he said, 'We need someone to injure Hakan Turan.' I replied, 'I don't have a good relationship with anyone; I can do it.' Okan said, 'No, find someone else.' At that moment, Berkant was next to me and said, 'I can do it.' This happened while we were in Istanbul. Then we came to Mersin. We followed him for two days and carried out the incident the next day. I recorded the footage, and Berkant fired. I did not know Hakan Turan beforehand; I never asked why I would shoot him. We learned on the road that Hakan Turan had died. Okan informed us about this via message. I am regretful."

Hakan Turan's wife, F. M. T., who testified at the hearing, said: "My husband was exporting fruits and vegetables to Russia. I do not know Okan Ç.; I have only heard his name. He was not my husband's partner; he had no official partnership. Okan Ç. had a company, and the products my husband exported were sent to Russia through him. As far as I remember, before this incident, around September-October, Okan called Hakan and said, 'There is a lot of good money here; we can earn 20-30 thousand dollars a month.' Hakan did not want to, but Okan called him day and night. He wanted Hakan's passport, saying, 'I will get a visa.' He gave his passport but did not want to go. Within a few days, his visa was issued, and Okan said, 'Come,' but Hakan did not go. Hakan had no enemies; as far as I know, he had no other disputes. Hakan owed Okan about 30-40 thousand dollars. However, his business was running this way; my husband did not suspect anything, and he did not tell us anything. If there had been a problem, I would have known; if I had known something like this would happen, we would have taken precautions. I am complaining about the defendants."

After listening to the testimonies of the party lawyers and witnesses, the court decided to continue the detention of the detained defendants and postponed the case to a later date.

WHAT HAPPENED?

On January 29, 2024, in the central Mezitli district of 75th Year Neighborhood, 34-year-old Hakan Turan, who was engaged in import-export business, was shot by a person while he was leaving his residence and heading towards his vehicle. Turan, who was shot in the groin, lost his life. After the murder, police teams launched an investigation and captured Hasan K. and Berkant Ö. in Şanlıurfa, who had fled the scene in a rented vehicle. It was revealed that they had recorded the moment of the murder on a mobile phone found on the suspects.

Moments when he fired with a gun were included.

Meanwhile, in the investigation related to the murder and the statements given by the suspects, it was suggested that the incident stemmed from a debt issue and that the suspects were allegedly acting as hitmen for money. According to the claim, the deceased Hakan Turan had a debt to Okan Ç., who was engaged in the fruit and vegetable trade in Russia, and it was alleged that after failing to pay his debt, he hired Berkant Ö. as a hitman through his cousin Hasan K., one of the two suspects who was arrested and living in Istanbul. However, it was claimed that Okan Ç. instructed the hitman not to kill but to injure Hakan Turan in the legs. It was reported that Okan Ç. was also wanted in connection with the murder.