Man sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison in Turkiye for killing a cat

A Turkish man has been sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison by an Istanbul court for killing a cat.

İbrahim Keloglan, who was accused of killing the cat named Eros by squeezing and kicking him in the elevator in Başakşehir, Istanbul, was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison with a discount of 1 year and 3 months for good behavior.

İbrahim Keloglan and the lawyers of the parties attended the hearing at the Küçükçekmece 16th Criminal Court of First Instance last week. Dozens of animal rights advocates were also present in the hall.

Upon being given the right to speak, İbrahim Keloglan said, "I repeat my previous statement. I am not a crime machine. I made a mistake that I will never forget in my life, in a state of anger and insanity due to a momentary psychological collapse I experienced. However, after the incident, a decision was made about me." "I bought food and fed animals in mountainous and rural areas at every opportunity. This felt like therapy to me," he said.

There was laughter in the hall.

Continuing his defense, Keloglan said, "I was not content with these and donated to an animal shelter. I will continue to do these as much as I can. I promise to get psychological support. This incident was misrepresented and encouraged the public to hatred and hostility," said.

The judge warned the defendant, "Speak what you feel, do not memorize."

Keloglan, who also said that all his information was exposed, continued as follows:

"I have come to a point where I cannot be seen in public. Any punishment I receive will not be important compared to what I have experienced so far. Everything I have said is true and true. I am very sorry. I accept my mistake. I still have my cat. I had a cat before this incident. All of these are proven by the available evidence. I am already a person who loves animals.

Following his client's defense, Keloğlan's lawyer said, “We demand the acquittal of my client. He has already served his punishment in the eyes of society. It will continue to attract from now on. I request that the client's experiences before the incident and his psychology during the incident be taken into consideration. "I am also a cat owner," he said.

The complainant, Ebubekir Fırat, said that he was not the owner of the animal, but he took care of the cat, and that he was psychologically damaged by the incident.

Announcing his opinion on the merits, the Public Prosecutor requested that Keloğlan be arrested and punished with a prison sentence close to the upper limit and not the lower limit.

After the opinion was announced, applause and screams were heard from the court.

Asked for his last words, İbrahim Keloglan said, "I trust my state. I have never run away anywhere until today. "I'm here," he said.

While the court was taking a decision break, some animal lovers tried to attack the defendant while the hall was being evacuated.

The court sentenced the defendant to 2 years and 6 months in prison for "deliberate killing of an animal".

Judicial control provisions in the form of an international travel ban were imposed on the defendant.

BACKGROUND OF THE INCIDENT

The incident took place on January 1 in the elevator of a building in Başakşehir, Istanbul. The cat, which the defendant İbrahim Keloglan kicked repeatedly, died after 6 minutes of torture.

Keloğlan was arrested on January 4 after the images emerged, and appeared before the judge on February 8.

In the case heard at the Küçükçekmece 16th Criminal Court of First Instance, the defendant was sentenced to 1 year and 3 months in prison for deliberately killing a pet, but his sentence was postponed and he was released. The prosecutor's office and the Istanbul Bar Association Animal Rights Center objected to this decision.

Küçükçekmece 4th High Criminal Court accepted the objections. In the decision, it was stated that although the cat tried to escape, the defendant persistently continued his action, chased and kicked it for minutes, and caused its death by stepping on it. It was explained that deterrent punishments were needed to protect animals.