MERSIN, Turkey
A Turkish prosecutor in the southern province of Mersin has demanded life imprisonment for three suspects on Wednesday over the brutal killing of a 21-year-old-student.
Ozgecan Aslan, a university student, was killed while reportedly resisting a sexual assault in a minibus in the southern province of Mersin on Feb. 13 this year. Her charred body was found two days after she was reported missing.
The prosecutor charged the three suspects, Ahmet Suphi Altindoken, Fatih Gokce and Necmettin Altindoken, with various crimes including “merciless killing” and “attempt to rape”, requesting life sentences for the three individuals.
During the trial, the prosecutor asked the court not to reduce their punishment by finding mitigating circumstances for the suspects.
The court can introduce such provisions to lessen punishment, which most predict as unlikely in this trial due to the nature and extensive coverage the case has drawn.
Aslan’s murder rocked Turkey, causing condemnation and sparking nationwide rally on violence against women.
Meanwhile, the three suspects were not brought to court to avoid any disturbance inside or outside of the courthouse.
Instead, they witnessed the hearing via video conference.
Outside of the court, the Women and Democracy Association, or KADEM, staged a protest and called on the court to severely punish the three suspects.
The court in Mersin ruled that the three defendants in the murder case would continue to stay in prison until the next hearing on Dec. 3. The three defendants will be brought to court for the third hearing.
