Eight people were arrested for causing the death of the Böcek family. It was reported that the company and the pesticide sprayers in the hotel where the family stayed were working without certification, and their testimonies revealed the dire situation. According to the referral letter from the prosecutor's office, it was reported that the Böcek family was locked in the hotel.
The investigation into the deaths of mother Çiğdem Böcek (27 years old), father Servet Böcek (38 years old), 3-year-old Masal and 6-year-old Kadir Muhammet Böcek, who arrived in Istanbul from Germany for tourist purposes on November 9, 2025 and died on November 13, 2025, allegedly from “poisoning”, continues.
Of the seven suspects brought to court after the suspicious death of the Böcek Family, six were transferred to the Criminal Court of Peace with a request for arrest and one with a request for judicial control.
Four suspects, including 1 hotel employee and 3 pesticide company employees, were arrested. A judicial control order was issued against three suspects: the hotel owner, the hotel employee and the bagel seller. Four people were previously arrested as part of the investigation and the number of people detained has increased to eight with the latest decision.
Among the arrested suspects were the owner of the hotel where the family stayed and the company employee who carried out disinfection at that hotel.
It is understood that insecticides branded Alfasc and Cypermetrin were used in the hotel without a certificate. There are records that these drugs cause nausea, prolonged vomiting, stomach pain, diarrhea, loss of consciousness and coma. The Böcek family was in this condition when they first arrived at the hospital, and when they returned to their hotel room later, their condition worsened.
DEFENDANT'S ADVICE
The prosecutor's statement showed that the pest control company did not have a corporate structure and that it performed pest control without any certification or training.
In his testimony, suspect Zeki K., representative of the pesticide company, made the following allegations:
“DSS company belongs to me. I founded this company 6-7 years ago. We do not have a workplace belonging to the company, we work as a home office. Doğan C. works as a daily wage worker at my workplace. My son Serkan does not work at this workplace. We are only registered with SSI through this company.”
“I DO NOT HAVE A CERTIFICATE”
“I do not have any certification for pesticide work. As far as I know, Doğan C. also does not have any certification. Drugs called Alfasc and Cypermetrin are used in pesticide work. I know that these drugs are mixed with water.
“On November 11, I received a phone call. The caller said they were running a hotel, there was a bug in one of the rooms and he was going to have it sprayed. So I instructed Doğan C. to spray. Doğan C. went alone and sprayed. I don't even know which hotel he went to.”
Suspect Doğan C., who carried out the spraying, said in his testimony: “I do not have any certificates related to the spraying work. As far as I know, Doğan C. does not have any certificates. Drugs called Alfasc and Cypermethrin are used in the spraying work. I know that these drugs are made by mixing them with water.” He defended himself by speaking.
IT TURNED OUT THAT THE FAMILY WAS GROUPED IN THE HOTEL
In the referral letter from the prosecutor's office requesting his arrest, MMUDC, the receptionist, stated in his first statement that he was “informed” that he was disturbed by the smell emanating from the disinfection process in room 101 and went out of the hotel, but in the statement considered “suspicious” he did not mention the smell caused by the disinfection process. In addition, in MMUDC's testimony at the prosecution, it was recorded that he locked the hotel door and went out to eat. When he returned, he saw an ambulance in front of the hotel.
The article states that the late father Servet Böcek could not go out because the door was locked in the camera footage on file, and at the same time the father tried to break the door with his child in his arms, the surrounding residents helped break the door, and at the same time MMUDC came to open the door.
The article highlights that it was determined that the MMUDC suspect acted contrary to his duty of care and diligence.
Doğan C., the suspect who carried out the spraying incident, defended himself as follows in his statement:
“I have been working at DSS Disinfection company for 2-3 months. I sprayed at the workplace called Harbor Suits, where the incident occurred in August 2025. After the call I received on November 11, I went to the hotel to spray.”
“I sprayed insecticide in the room that the staff here showed me. I used Alfasc and Cypermetrin. I mixed these drugs with water and then sprayed. I applied gel insecticide to 16-17 areas evenly in the same room. Before spraying, I closed the bathroom door and ventilated it with paper tape. After spraying, I left the hotel by taping the room door. I do not have a certificate for pesticide spraying.”
“WE HAVE THE SAME COMPANY THAT ORGANIZES A FESTIVAL IN AUGUST”
Suspect Hakan O. said: “I took over a workplace called Harbor Suits about 5-6 months ago. I had a leg problem due to diabetes, so I couldn't go to the hotel for about 3 months. During this time, Halil D. did all the work related to the hotel. With my guidance, Halil D. contacted the DSS company, where we previously carried out pesticide operations. As a result, pesticides were done on November 11. Neither do I. My employees have any responsibility regarding the pesticide use process. I asked this company if they have a certificate.” “I didn't ask.” he declared.
During the investigation into the family's death, boy seller YD, lokum seller FT, kokoreç seller EE and the previous operator of the FMO cafe were arrested.
The Provincial Department of Agriculture also shared the results of food sampling at places where families came to eat. There was no evidence of poisoning in the reports.
PUBLICATION OF PRELIMINARY FRENCH REPORT
According to reports, the Böcek family may have been affected by chemical poisoning in the hotel.
In the statement it was stated that the manner in which the incident occurred, their medical history, the latest information obtained and the fact that 2 more people staying at the same hotel were being treated at the hospital with similar complaints were jointly assessed and the following expressions were used:
“It is believed that they died mainly from chemical poisoning from the environment in the hotel where they stayed, and less likely from food poisoning from the food they consumed.”
“NO VENTILATION IN ROOM NO. 201”
The report states that the hotel where the family stayed was sprayed with a harmful insecticide on November 11, 2025. According to verbal information received from the Crime Scene Investigation Team, room 201 where the family stayed was located directly above room 101, where the spray was applied, and room 201, where the family stayed, had no ventilation system.
The report also said that two more foreigners staying at the same hotel were treated at the hospital with similar complaints on Saturday, November 15, 2025. On the other hand, the chemicals and boxes used in the hotel disinfection process, the first blood sample of Çiğdem Böcek's mother taken at the hospital, the first blood sample and stomach contents of Servet Böcek's father taken at the hospital, and the first blood sample of Servet Böcek's father The two foreigners taken at the hospital were sent to the Institute of Medicine forensic agency for examination by the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor's Office.
WHAT HAPPENED?
Servet and Çiğdem Böcek and their children Kadir Muhammet and Masal, who arrived in Istanbul from Germany on November 9 and stayed in a hotel in Fatih, were taken to the hospital on November 12 due to complaints of nausea and vomiting, and the children could not be saved despite intervention.
Two tourists staying at the hotel where the family was staying were also treated at the same hospital for nausea and vomiting. A third person in the same room and accompanying the patient had to be hospitalized for examination due to low heart rate.
The hotel was sealed off after an investigation by the police team within the scope of the investigation.
