Eskişehir university rector resigns after four personnel killed in shooting

ESKİŞEHİR

A university rector in the central Anatolian province of Eskişehir resigned on April 11 after a shooting on April 5, in which four university personnel were killed.

Hasan Gönen told reporters in a press meeting to announce his resignation, saying he had resigned for the safety of the investigation into the shooting.

“By acquiring knowledge, I have worked with my colleagues to increase the honor of the Turkish nation since 2011. I thank my family at Eskişehir Osmangazi University. After these statements, I am resigning from duty in order for the survival of our state and the salvation of the investigation, and so as not to wear out state institutions, primarily my university,” said the rector.

Four people were killed by a research assistant at Eskişehir Osmangazi University on April 5.

The research assistant, Volkan Bayar, 37, killed deputy dean Mikail Yalçın, faculty secretary Fatih Özmutlu, research assistant Yasin Armağan and lecturer Serdar Çağlak at the education faculty of the university.

Following the incident, interesting details and claims emerged.

Colleagues of the university personnel said the shooting had been expected but no measures had been taken against the attacker.

Gönen also said there had been an ongoing investigation into the attacker’s verbal attacks on the academic and administrative staff at the university.

The dean of the education faculty, Prof. Dr. Cemil Yücel, said the suspect was mentally unstable and had constantly been accusing staff members of being followers of the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), a group widely believed to have been behind the July 2016 coup attempt in Turkey.