Second hearing opens in trial over Bolu hotel blaze
BOLU
A court has launched the second hearing in the trial over a deadly fire at the Grand Kartal Hotel in the northwestern city of Bolu, which killed 78 people, including 36 children, and injured dozens earlier this year.
The case, which involves 32 defendants — 19 of them in custody — stems from the Jan. 21 blaze that swept through the ski resort hotel. Families of victims and legal experts have demanded that those on trial face charges of “probable murder.”
The first hearing opened on July 7 and lasted 10 days, during which the court heard testimony from defendants and complainants. Critical evidence was later added to the case file, and the chief public prosecutor’s office in Bolu submitted its opinion on the merits ahead of the Sept. 22 session.
In its opinion, the prosecution sought heavy sentences against seven people, including hotel owner Halit Ergül and general manager Emir Aras. Each faces up to 1,950 years in prison on 78 counts of “probable murder,” along with additional terms of 178 years and 582 months apiece for “probable wounding” and “probable damage to property.”
Twenty other defendants, including company board members Emine Mürtezaoğlu Ergül, Ceyda Hacıbekiroğlu and Elif Aras, face prison terms of up to 22 years and six months for “causing the death and injury of more than one person through deliberate negligence.”
The opinion also calls for sentences ranging from two to 15 years for four current and former Interior Ministry officials — Sırrı Köstereli, Bünyamin Bal, Yeliz Erdoğan and Mehmet Özel — on similar charges. All defendants deny the charges.
