Akın Gürlek Announces Breakthroughs in Three More Unsolved Murder Cases

Turkey’s Justice Minister Akın Gürlek said authorities had cleared three more unsolved murder cases, with operations in Istanbul, Mardin and Manisa leading to multiple arrests and detentions.

The cases include the disappearance of Zeynep Yıldırım, who had been missing in Istanbul since Sept. 12, 2022. Investigators determined that she had last communicated with Fethi Dağlı before disappearing. Dağlı, who was already in custody in connection with another murder investigation, was questioned, and a woman’s body was found during a site inspection on Sept. 1, 2026. The Forensic Medicine Institute identified the remains, and Dağlı was arrested again as part of the investigation.

Authorities also reopened a 2012 case in Nusaybin, Mardin, involving the killings of İsmail Akın and his 10-year-old daughter, Elif Akın. Investigators assessed conflicting statements, phone traffic records, narrowed base-station analysis and other new findings. Simultaneous operations in four provinces resulted in 15 suspects being detained, while efforts to capture one more suspect continued.

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We will not abandon the pursuit of any unsolved crime.

A separate investigation examined the 2016 killing of Abdurrahman Aysu in Akhisar, Manisa. Investigators identified people they believe carried out the murder and others who may have helped conceal it. Seven suspects were detained in operations in Manisa, Bursa and Istanbul.

Gürlek said the cases were solved under the coordination of the Department for Investigating Unsolved Crimes, established on April 24, 2026. “We will not abandon the pursuit of any unsolved crime,” he said. He also pledged to reexamine older cases using technological capabilities and said the work aimed to provide long-awaited justice to victims’ families.

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Justice will ultimately prevail, sooner or later.