Expert Report: Kemal Kurkut Hit by Aimed Shot, Not 'Bouncing Bullet'

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The fifth hearing of the case of Kemal Kurkut, who was shot dead by the police in 2017 Newroz celebrations in Diyarbakır, has been held at the Diyarbakır 7th Heavy Penal Court.

The expert report prepared on the killing by the National Criminal Bureau company said, "Police officer Y.Ş. aimed and shot directly at Kemal Kurkut" and "Who killed Kemal Kurkut is defendant police officer Y.Ş."

"Kurkut was not shot by a bouncing bullet"

Defendant police officer Y.Ş., who is being tried without arrest, and his attorney, Kemal Kurkut's brother Ferhat Kurkut and the family's attorneys, Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Diyarbakır MPs Musa Farisoğulları, Semra Güzel, Dersim Dağ and the executives of the party's Diyarbakır provincial organization attended the hearing.

The presiding judge announced that the report which is requested by the court from the National Criminal Bureau has reached them and read the conclusion of the report:

"... It was seen that the police officer who is thought to be the perpetrator of the incident aimed his pistol at Kurkut and that the suspected police officer shot while he was aiming at Kurkut;

"It was seen that Kurkut was not shot by a bouncing bullet;

"It was seen that the pistol moved upwards (the move caused by firing) with the firing, and the moving was shown multiple times in the decoded video;

"It was seen that after the police officer shot fire, Kemal began to run while he was holding the left side of his upper body."

"Y.Ş. shot Kemal Kurkut"

Saying, "According to the decoding by the National Criminal Bureau, who shot Kemal Kurkut is Y.Ş.," the report concluded that the entrance hole that was seen in the autopsy of Kurkut occurred because of the mentioned shot.

Suspected officer insists on "bouncing bullet"

After the presiding judge read the conclusion of the report, defendant Ş.Y. raised his defense.

Opposing to the National Criminal Bureau's report, Ş.Y. referred to the reports of autopsy, police and the Council of Forensic Medicine, which said that a bullet was found in Kurkut's body and that Kurkut was killed because of a bouncing bullet.

Y.Ş. requested a new report to be prepared.

No arrest, no judicial control

Mehmet Emin Aktar, an attorney for the Kurkut family, requested the arrest of the defendant, claiming that there are suspicions of evidence spoliation and fleeing because the defendant is a police officer and is still on the job.

Announcing its verdict, the court rejected the requests of arrest and judicial control. It also requested an additional report from the National Criminal Bureau.

The next hearing will be held on May 30, 2019, at 09.25.

(AS/VK)