Turkey to investigate 6-year-old death in Danish jail

By Meltem Bulur

ANKARA

Turkey will investigate the death of its citizen who died in custody in a Danish jail six years ago, the Presidency of Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) said Friday.

The organs of Ekrem Sahin, a Turkish-Danish national who died in 2011 in Denmark, have been brought to Turkey for an autopsy, according to a statement by YTB.

Sahin was remanded in custody after a dispute during an identity check in Denmark.

He died on Feb. 14, 2011, six months prior to his release.

Authorities in Denmark had told Sahin’s family that he had died of a heart failure.

The family had demanded that an autopsy be performed by Turkish officials, however Denmark had refused to handover Sahin's organs to Turkey, despite sending his body.

Sahin's mother Nermin Kalkan had filed an application to the YTB, following which Turkey's Justice and Foreign Ministries also got involved in the case.

Yusuf Sahin, his uncle, said: "We have been told he died of a heart failure. But we want to learn the truth."