A court has held the third hearing over a fire that killed 78 people, including 36 children, at the Grand Kartal Hotel in the northwestern city of Bolu’s Kartalkaya ski resort on Jan. 21.
The latest hearing took place on Oct. 27, with 32 defendants, including the hotel owner, managers and municipal officials, appearing before the court. Twenty of the defendants remain in pre-trial detention.
Families of the victims filled the courtroom under tight security as photos of those who died were displayed outside the hall.
Some families shouted at the defendants, calling them “murderers,” as tensions rose during the session.
Abdurrahman Gençbay, who lost his son in the fire, addressed the court, saying families were expecting a landmark ruling. He criticized the exclusion of several public officials from the case and said the hotel management acted with “possible intent” by neglecting their responsibilities.
The court is expected to continue hearing final statements before issuing its verdict, with the session likely to last another one or two days.
The prosecutor demands aggravated prison sentences totaling thousands of years for several defendants — including the hotel’s owner, Halit Ergül, and general manager, Emir Aras — on charges of “killing with possible intent.”
