Arrest made in fatal car crash involving famous writer's son

ISTANBUL

Turkish authorities have made the first arrest in connection with the deadly car crash involving renowned writer Eylem Tok's son, who fled the country shortly after the incident.

The incident that claimed the life of Oğuz Murat Aci and left four others hospitalized in Istanbul on March 1 involved a group of five friends traveling on ATV-type vehicles when a luxury jeep driven by 17-year-old Timur Cihantimur collided with them.

The young driver and his mother, Tok, fled the country after the accident. Tok, accompanied by her son, reportedly left for Egypt and then the United States. The father of Timur Cihantimur, Bülent Cihantimur, has been slapped with a travel ban as part of the ongoing investigation.

Following the collision, Tok allegedly smuggled her son away from the crash site using the vehicle driven by Ayşe Ceren Sataoğlu, an employee in Bülent Cihantimur's company. Sataoğlu was detained a week after providing a statement at the police station on March 4 and has since been arrested.

Türkiye has initiated the process of requesting the extradition of the son and his mother from the United States. "We have completed the [requested] documents. We hope that the United States will respond positively to our request," Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç stated.

Meanwhile, the case has further complexities as Bülent Cihantimur, a doctor by profession, has been identified as a suspect in a separate investigation involving money laundering. He is one of 13 suspects in a case involving influencer couple Özlem Öz and Tayyar Öz. The investigation among influencers has been a focal point in Türkiye for months, revealing alleged financial misconduct.

In a related development, the Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK) launched an investigation against Gökalp Kökçü, the prosecutor overseeing the investigation involving the doctor. Allegations suggest that Kökçü gave preferential treatment to Bülent Cihantimur and ruled in his favor. Subsequently, Kökçü opted to retire from the profession by submitting a retirement petition.