He was accused of killing his pregnant wife. Release decision from the Supreme Court

A release decision was made for the defendant who was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for pushing and killing his pregnant wife in Fethiye district of Muğla.

In the case heard at Fethiye 1st High Criminal Court, the decision was appealed after the defendant was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for "premeditated murder of a close relative".

The General Criminal Assembly of the Supreme Court of Appeals decided to release the defendant Hakan Aysal during the appeal review phase of the case file.

Defendant Aysal's lawyer, Mehmet Buğra Çiçek, argued that his client did not commit the crime of intentional murder against his wife.

Çiçek stated that these issues were clearly stated in the dissenting justification written by the presiding judge of the trial in Fethiye, in the dissenting votes written by two of the judges of the 1st Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals, and in the objection of the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office of the Supreme Court of Appeals, and noted the following:

"The General Criminal Assembly of the Supreme Court of Appeals has decided to release my client in its decision as of today. The reason for this release decision made by the General Criminal Assembly is a clear presumption that the unfair aggravated life sentence given to my client has been overturned. My client's 6-year unjust detention, of which approximately 4 years was spent in a solitary cell, has ended as of today. I would like to thank the Turkish judiciary on behalf of myself and my client for this fair and correct decision, albeit late."

WHAT HAPPENED?

Semra Aysal died with her 7-month-old baby in her belly after falling off the cliffs while taking a photo in Butterfly Valley on June 19, 2018. In the investigation launched after the death was found suspicious, Hakan Aysal, who was found to have taken out personal accident insurance worth 400 thousand liras for his wife shortly before the incident, was taken into custody and was arrested on November 21, 2020, for allegedly pushing his wife and causing her death.