09.01.2026 15:34
In the case of the moral compensation lawsuit filed regarding the serious injury of 12-year-old Tunahan Yılmaz in Ankara due to an attack by stray dogs, the court ruled that the Ankara Governorship, Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, and Keçiören Municipality must pay the family 5 million TL in compensation.
In Ankara, regarding the incident where Tunahan Yılmaz (12) was seriously injured due to an attack by stray dogs, the court ruled that the Ankara Governorship, Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, and Keçiören Municipality, which it deemed to be at fault in the incident, must pay the family 5 million lira in compensation.
The incident occurred on December 7, 2023, in the Kafkaslar neighborhood of Keçiören district. On the date of the incident, 10-year-old Tunahan Yılmaz was attacked by street dogs while on his way to school and was seriously injured. Yılmaz was discharged in March after undergoing consecutive surgeries at Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine Hospital for 3 months, but the treatment process continued. Tunahan Yılmaz underwent a skin graft in his 15th major operation at the same hospital on June 26, 2025.
DEFENDANTS ACQUITTED As part of the investigation conducted by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the incident; a lawsuit was filed against Mustafa Şener, the Director of the Veterinary Affairs Department of the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, and Asena Ülkü Ünal, the Deputy Director of the Environmental Protection Department of the Keçiören Municipality, for the crime of 'misusing their duties through negligent behavior,' with a request for imprisonment of 3 months to 1 year. In the case heard at the Ankara 62nd Criminal Court of First Instance, the defendants Asena Ülkü Ünal and Mustafa Şener were acquitted.
10 MILLION LIRA COMPENSATION LAWSUIT The Yılmaz family, through their lawyer Aslıhan Ergün Ercan, filed a moral compensation lawsuit for 10 million lira, citing that Tunahan underwent 15 surgeries, his medical operations would continue for a long time, he could not attend school, and there was a service fault on the part of the defendants. The Ankara Governorship, Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, and Keçiören Municipality stated that they were not at fault in the incident and requested the dismissal of the case. The Ankara 8th Administrative Court, which rejected the request, concluded that the responsibilities for the protection, care, supervision, training of aggressive stray animals - primarily dogs - and their adoption, as well as the establishment of animal shelters, belong to the governorships, metropolitan and district municipalities. It was stated that the purpose of moral compensation is to alleviate the pain and suffering caused by the incident, and to effectively warn the administration that caused the damage due to service faults to show the necessary care and attention.
DECISION MADE It was emphasized that after the incident, Tunahan suffered numerous injuries on his body, had many open wounds, received rabies treatment, the wound on his head was closed with a tissue graft from another area, open wounds on various parts of his body were covered with dressings and left scars, he was in intensive care, and due to immobility, a clot formed in the vein of his leg. Additionally, it was highlighted that he developed a nutritional disorder, could not take care of himself, and continued his education at home. Evaluating all these matters, the court partially accepted the moral compensation request and ruled that the defendants at fault in the incident must jointly and severally pay 5 million lira in compensation with legal interest.
"A COMPENSATION NEVER SEEN BEFORE" The family's lawyer Aslıhan Ergün Ercan stated, "The court ruled for an unprecedented compensation amount to alleviate the child's suffering, even though the incident occurred during the period when the provisions of the 'sterilize, vaccinate, release' article of the Animal Protection Law No. 5199 were valid, and the administration should have shown the necessary care. This decision also serves as a warning to the administrations that fail to perform their duties. The law No. 5199 has been amended, and it has become illegal to have stray dogs on the streets. This has opened the way for very high amounts to be decided in compensation lawsuits that will be filed as a result of stray dog attacks that occur in this manner. If the failure to perform their duties leads to citizens being injured, it has also opened the way for prosecution for the act of 'deliberately causing harm to the public' in cases where high compensation amounts arise and the number is at an unacceptable level."