In the case of Tutar Apartments collapsing during the earthquake on February 6, 2023 in Adana and becoming the graves of 63 people, 3 defendants were sentenced to 15 years in prison for “intentional negligence causing many deaths and injuries”.
At the hearing at Adana Supreme Criminal Court No. 7, the detained technical application manager and construction engineers CA, BB and OB, who were said to be carrying out renovations on the apartment on the ground floor of the building, attended the hearing through the Audio and Video Information System (SEGBİS) from prison. The prosecutor repeated his position on the grounds and based on all the evidence collected within the scope of the records and expert reports of the Faculty of Construction, Faculty of Engineering of Karadeniz Technical University, requested that the CA, the director of technical applications and the construction engineer, and BB and OB, who allegedly renovated the apartment on the ground floor of the building, each be sentenced to imprisonment of up to 22 years and 6 months for each crime. The crime of “killing and injuring many people due to intentional negligence”. The prosecutor expressed the opinion that defendant BB should be released with a judicial control order of “not leaving the house”, taking into account the time he was detained, and that the other defendants should be allowed to remain in their current status.
THE DEFENDANTS DO NOT ACCEPT THE ALLEGATIONS Defendant OB testified that he did not accept the expert report of Karadeniz Technical University and said: “I have been detained for a long time, I have not committed a crime. In any case, our store has not been demolished. The statements about us are not true. I have no doubts about escape. I want to be released and acquitted.” he said. The remaining defendant, BB, did not accept the charges against him and said: “We have never cut columns, made major renovations or cut beams in this building. We have never damaged the static structure of the building. As I have repeatedly stated in previous hearings, I am a person completely unrelated to the building's renovation work. We did not threaten anyone with a gun. I do not accept the charges. I ask for release and acquittal.” The CA, the technical application manager and the detained construction engineer, asserted that he was not at fault or negligent in the performance of his official duties and requested his release and acquittal. The plaintiffs' lawyers, who gave testimony at the trial, requested that defendants OB, BB and CA be punished for “intentional murder with intent” and that their current status be continued.
EACH 15 YEARS IN PRISON The trial panel sentenced defendants CA, OB and BB to 15 years in prison each for “intentionally negligent killing and injuring many people” and decided to continue detention.
63 PEOPLE MISSED IN THE BUILDING The arrest warrant was issued on February 16, 2023 for the CA, technical applications manager and construction engineer of Tutar C Apartment Complex, where 63 people died and 12 were injured, within the scope of the investigation of construction defects of buildings that collapsed during the Adana earthquake. The cores taken from the concrete columns by construction experts were sent to the ground and building testing laboratory for testing, and the results of the study determined that the apartment block in question did not pass the earthquake resistance test. The Adana Supreme Criminal Court No. 7 decided to file a criminal complaint with the Adana Chief Prosecutor's Office because there were enough suspicions about BB and OB, who allegedly renovated the apartment on the ground floor of the building. BB and his son OB, who were found to have renovated the apartment on the ground floor of the building and that this renovation damaged the building, were detained on instructions from the prosecutor's office and arrested for “negligence causing death and injury”.
