Authorities order DNA test for body of notorious femicide convict

ISTANBUL

Turkish authorities have ordered the exhumation of the grave of a convicted murderer, who committed suicide in prison while serving his sentence for a femicide nearly 15 years ago, following persistent public skepticism over his death, the victim’s lawyer has announced.

Cem Garipoğlu brutally murdered 17-year-old Münevver Karabulut in 2009 in Istanbul, an atrocity that gripped the nation and sparked widespread outrage for an extended period. Street cleaners found a decapitated woman’s body in a wastebin.

The case, a landmark instance of femicide in the country, saw Garipoğlu sentenced to life imprisonment, during which he purportedly took his own life.

However, for years, intermittent allegations have surfaced suggesting that Garipoğlu may have faked his death with the help of his influential connections and subsequently fled abroad under false pretenses.

Süreyya Karabulut, the father of the victim, had previously requested the exhumation of Garipoğlu's grave, a plea that was denied by the judiciary at the time.

On Sept. 26, in a statement, family’s lawyer Rezan Özdemir said, “The murder of Münevver Karabulut holds paramount significance in Türkiye, serving as a precedent-setting case in the context of gender-based violence and femicides, fostering societal awareness and ongoing vigilance.”

The Silivri Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has granted the request, ruling in favor of the exhumation of Garipoğlu's grave and issuing a directive to the Anatolian Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office to proceed with the exhumation, he said.

"This longstanding enigma, which has been the subject of relentless inquiry across universities, panels, seminars and the media — both print and social — will finally be laid to rest with the public’s apprehensions addressed,” the statement noted.

The prosecution will schedule a date to open the grave, during which DNA testing will be conducted on the remains.