PodcastTurkish prosecutors seek up to 14 years for governor who abducted, beat up ex-girlfriend
Turkish prosecutors have demanded up to 14 years in jail for a governor who is facing charges of abducting and beating up his former girlfriend at a forested land.
Duvar English
Turkish prosecutors are seeking up to 14 years in prison for Governor Orhan Çiftçi over charges that he abducted his former girlfriend and inflicted violence on her.
Çiftçi is facing accusations of “depriving one of their freedom by using force and tricking them,” Turkish Deutsche Welle reported on Sept. 8.
Çiftçi was lastly serving as the governor of the northwestern Kırklareli province before being summoned to the Interior Ministry in Ankara due to the accusations.
He was serving as the governor of the Mudanya district in the northwestern province of Bursa when the incident subject to investigation happened. Çiftçi and the woman known by initials M.Ö. dated between 2014 and 2017. After the relationship ended, Çiftçi abducted M.Ö. from a shopping mall with the help of three others.
According to the case file, M.Ö was taken to a forested land and subjected to violence here. She told the prosecutors in her testimony that Çiftçi had also made her kiss his shoes.
Following M.Ö.’s criminal complaint and the media coverage of the issue, Çiftçi refuged the allegations but did not comment on the surfaced video footages.
At the hearing that took place at the Istanbul 4th Heavy Penalty Court on Sept. 8, prosecutors presented their legal opinion (“mütalaa”), saying that the video footages and phone records prove that Çiftçi and the accompanying three people abducted M.Ö. by force.
The court will give its final decision at a hearing scheduled for December.