Trial for child murder suspended as gov’t fails to permit prosecution of police officer

The trial into the murder of a 12-year-old girl shot dead on Oct. 12, 2015 in Diyarbakır during a curfew, has been put on hold following the Interior Ministry's refusal to grant permission for the prosecution of the police officer in question.

Duvar English

A trial into a police officer for his suspected involvement in killing a 12-year-old in the Kurdish-majority province of Diyarbakır, has been put on hold following the Interior Ministry's refusal to grant authorization to prosecute him.

Helin Şen was shot in the head as a result of fire opened from a police armored vehicle on Oct. 12, 2015 as she was on her way to get bread from a nearby bakery shop. The incident happened during one of the all-day curfews in Diyarbakır's Sur district. The curfew at the time was implemented due to the Turkish security forces' military operations in the area.

Following the incident, an investigation into police officer Abdullah E. was launched on charges of “causing the death of Helin Şen by gross carelessness.” The fourth hearing of the trial took place at the Diyarbakır 1st Heavy Penal Court on Sept. 24, Mezopotamya news agency reported.

During the hearing, the court put the trial against Abdullah E. on hold following the Interior Ministry's refusal to grant permission for the suspect's prosecution. According to the Law on the Prosecution of Civil Servants, the judiciary must get permission from the government before being able to proceed against a civil servant.