Sole jailed defendant released in child marriage case in Islamic community

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In a case involving a girl who suffered sexual abuse within an Islamic community, the sole defendant under arrest has been released.

The incident came to light when the investigation into the abuse was leaked to the press at the end of last year. The girl, identified with the initials H.K.G., was married off in 2004 to Kadir İ., who was 29 years old at the time. H.K.G. is the daughter of the head of the Hiranur Foundation, associated with the influential İsmailağa sect, and Kadir İ. is a member of the community.

Yesterday, the trial commenced for the first time for the seven defendants, including three doctors, who were charged with fabricating a fake bone age report for the girl. The report was allegedly used to legitimize the marriage.

The hearing took place at the İstanbul Anadolu 20th Heavy Penal Court, with the father, Yusuf Ziya G., Kadir İ., and the arrested defendant of the case, M.E.M., in attendance. The non-arrested defendants, M.O.B., M.G.L., and K. Ş., were also present in the courtroom.

Objections to ministry and bar lawyers

Lawyers from the Ministry of Family and Social Services, Ankara Bar Association Chair Mustafa Köroğlu, İstanbul Bar Association Chair Filiz Saraç, lawyers from the İstanbul Bar, and attorneys representing the parties were also present in the courtroom.

The lawyer for the defendant M.O.B. argued that since his client is a public servant, administrative permission is required to investigate him. Furthermore, he requested the suspension of the trial.

Some of the defendant lawyers claimed that "bar associations and lawyers from the Ministry of Family and Social Services have no right to attend the trial." Defendant lawyers requested the rejection of the ministry's and bar associations' requests to attend and the trial to be held behind closed doors.

In response to the requests, the prosecutor demanded the rejection of the request to suspend the trial.

The prosecutor also advocated for the attendance of bar associations and lawyers from the Ministry of Family and Social Services and argued that the trial should be held behind closed doors.

The court decided to hold the trial behind closed doors and subsequently removed journalists and spectators from the courtroom.

The court ruled for the release of M.E.M. due to the time he spent under arrest, despite conceding the "strong suspicion that he committed a crime."

The indictment

In the indictment, three public officials and seven individuals were charged with imprisonment for falsifying H.K.G.'s age through fraudulent means.

The 28-page indictment includes allegations against neurology specialist A.K.Ö. and internal medicine specialist M.O.B., both working at Haydarpaşa Numune Training and Research Hospital, for "forgery of an official document," with a sentence ranging from three to eight years.

According to the indictment, on December 5, 2012, when H.K.G. was 14 years old, was admitted to the Haydarpaşa hospital for an examination. However, someone else was taken for an X-ray instead of her. The report prepared on December 10, 2012, indicated that H.K.G.'s bone age was 21.

According to the indictment, in order for H.K.G. to obtain this report, K.İ. and the foundation's employee M.E.M. accompanied her to the hospital. M.E.M. handled the admission procedures at the hospital. During the hospital procedures, İ. and M. were assisted by hospital employee K. Ş., who also arranged the fake X-ray.

The indictment also includes H.K.G.'s statement regarding the examination process that led to the creation of the fake report.

The health worker who took the X-ray to determine H.K.G.'s bone age was identified as M.S., and they passed away on December 10, 2022.

According to the indictment, neurology specialist A.K.Ö. conducted an examination based on the X-ray taken without seeing H.K.G. The neurology specialist determined that H.K.G. was 21 years old.

Child and Early Psychology doctor M.G.L. also provided an evaluation in a report stating that H.K.G. displayed mental development consistent with a 21-year-old.

Internal medicine specialist M.O.B. made a diagnosis without conducting a physical examination of H.K.G.

The indictment mentions that M.O.B. provided a statement during an administrative investigation initiated by the Ministry of Health and fled abroad from İstanbul Airport on June 15, 2023. (RT/VK)