Man sentenced to 20 years for deadly hit and run in Istanbul

ISTANBUL

A court has sentenced a man to 20 years in prison without parole after finding him guilty in a fatal hit-and-run that led to the death of a professional cyclist in Istanbul's Kadıköy district, considering his unrepentant character.

The accident happened on July 18 last year when Temel Ünlü fatally hit Doğanay Güzelgün with his car while Güzelgün was trying to cross Kadıköy’s Bostancı coastal road on his bicycle.

Ünlü faced the verdict at the Heavy Penal Court, where he defended himself by denying drug use during the accident but admitted to drinking alcohol after surrendering 71 days later.

"If I wanted to, I wouldn't have accepted it, and it wouldn't have shown up in the blood test. But I told the truth. I wish it had not happened. I ask for your forgiveness and my condolences to the family of the deceased," Ünlü said in his statement.

The court emphasized his failure to surrender immediately and his attempts to shift blame, which led to the decision not to reduce his sentence due to his "unrepentant" nature. Ünlü was sentenced to 20 years in prison for causing death with possible intent.

Mehmet Can Ç., one of the passengers in the car during the accident, previously claimed that Ünlü asked him to take the blame, reassuring him that there were no casualties. After learning that one person had lost his life in the accident, he confessed that Ünlü was driving the car and was released by the court.

Authorities informed that Ünlü also has 17 criminal records. The court arrested him on the charges of "causing death by negligence" and subsequently sent him to Maltepe Prison.