14.10.2026 19:51
A verdict has been issued in the case of Gina Mercimek, a 9-year-old Syrian national who did not return home on the day she went to school in Kilis in 2023 and was found dead in a water well. At the hearing held after the Court of Cassation's reversal ruling, the court sentenced Azittin Altınöz and Hüseyin Boğuç, who had previously been acquitted, to aggravated life imprisonment for deprivation of liberty, sexual abuse of a child, and qualified premeditated murder.
Two defendants tried in connection with the death of 9-year-old Syrian national Gina Mercimek, who went missing in Kilis and was found dead in a water well, were sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment.
At the hearing at the 2nd High Criminal Court, one of the detained defendants, Azittin Altınöz, was present. Hüseyin Boğuç attended the hearing via the Audio and Visual Information System (SEGBİS) from the prison where he was detained.
The family of the deceased, lawyers from the Ministry of Family and Social Services, and the parties' lawyers were present at the hearing.
DEFENDANTS CLAIMED THEY WERE INNOCENT
Boğuç, repeating his previous defense, claimed he was innocent and requested his release.
Defendant Altınöz also asserted that he was innocent and requested his release.
The trial prosecutor requested that both defendants be punished for the crimes of 'deprivation of liberty', 'sexual abuse of a child', and 'aggravated intentional killing'.
The court panel sentenced defendants Hüseyin Boğuç and Azittin Altınöz to aggravated life imprisonment for the crimes of 'deprivation of liberty', 'sexual abuse of a child', and 'aggravated intentional killing'.
FAMILY'S LAWYER: THEY WERE SENTENCED AT THE MAXIMUM LIMIT
At the end of the hearing, the deceased's lawyer, Sümeyye Gökçe, told journalists that, as a member of the Children of the Earth Association and as the family's lawyers, they had followed the process from the very beginning.
Noting that the process lasted more than three years, Gökçe spoke as follows:
'In the decision hearing held after the Court of Cassation's reversal decision, the court sentenced both defendants, without applying any reduction, at the maximum limit for the crimes of 'deprivation of liberty of a child for sexual purposes by more than one person through deception', 'sexual abuse of a child by inserting an organ into the body by more than one person', and 'intentional killing for the purpose of concealing the crime against a female child'; the defendants received the heaviest sentence they could receive in this world.'
Gökçe stated that, no matter where and against whom the rights violation occurs, they will continue their struggle for a world where children can live and study without discrimination and without fear.
GINA HAD NOT RETURNED HOME FROM SCHOOL
On April 4, 2023, Gina Mercimek (9), who went to school in Okçular Neighborhood, had not returned home. Her family applied to the police, and an effort was launched to find the little girl. The girl's body was found in a water well in the courtyard of the two-story house belonging to Hüseyin Boğuç on the same street.
Of the detained defendants, Hüseyin Boğuç was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment, while Azittin Altınöz was acquitted.
The 1st Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation, in its review upon the objection of the deceased's family, ruled that the acquitted defendant should also be punished and that the sentence to be imposed on the other defendant should be applied at the maximum limit, and overturned the local court's decision.