The Court of Cassation has rejected a prosecutor’s objection to the overturning of an aggravated life sentence given to Cemal Metin Avcı, who murdered university student Pınar Gültekin in the southwestern province of Muğla.
The 1st Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation had earlier annulled Avcı’s aggravated life sentence, citing "provocation" from Gültekin, despite the Chief Public Prosecutor’s opinion opposing the annulment.
Following the prosecutor’s objection, the case was reviewed again by the same chamber. However, the court upheld its earlier decision by a majority vote, stating that there was “no error” in its initial ruling. As a result, the decision recognizing a reduction in Avcı’s sentence due to alleged “unjust provocation” remains in force. The case will now be forwarded to the Court of Cassation's General Criminal Assembly for a final ruling.'
'A legal monstrosity'
Rezan Epözdemir, one of the Gültekin family's lawyers, strongly criticized the decision. Citing forensic reports that indicated Pınar Gültekin was burned alive, Epözdemir condemned the chamber’s assertion that Avcı did not act with “monstrous intent,” calling the ruling a “legal monstrosity” and “devoid of conscience.”
She also pointed out that the court panel had undergone a change in membership before the latest decision. Previously, members Osman Atalay and Muzaffer Sayın had submitted a comprehensive dissenting opinion. In the recent vote, the objection was again rejected, this time with a 3-2 majority.
Background
In July 2020, 27-year-old university student Pınar Gültekin was murdered by 32-year-old Cemal Metin Avcı in Muğla. The killing sparked national outrage. After strangling Gültekin, Avcı placed her body in a barrel, set it on fire, and poured concrete over it.
At the final hearing of the trial at the 3rd Heavy Penal Court in Muğla in 2022, prosecutors sought an aggravated life sentence for Avcı. However, the court applied a provocation reduction and sentenced him to 23 years in prison. His brother, Mertcan Avcı, was acquitted.
The Gültekin family appealed the decision. The 4th Criminal Chamber of the İzmir Regional Court of Justice reconsidered the case and sentenced Cemal Metin Avcı to aggravated life imprisonment for “premeditated murder with cruelty and monstrous feeling,” without applying a provocation reduction. Mertcan Avcı was sentenced to four years in prison for “tampering with evidence.”
The defense appealed again, bringing the case before the Court of Cassation. The 1st Criminal Chamber then overturned the aggravated life sentence, arguing that the defendant had not benefited from a provocation reduction. The Chief Public Prosecutor objected, but the chamber reaffirmed its decision by majority vote after a change in its composition. (EMK/VK)
