One killed, another wounded in latest café shooting in Istanbul

ISTANBUL – Anadolu Agency

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One person has been killed and another was wounded in Istanbul’s latest café shooting spree, as the total number of killed in multiple separate incidents over the past week in the metropolis has increased to four, with several others injured. 

An unknown number of unidentified gunmen opened fire on a teahouse in the Yeşilce neighborhood in Istanbul’s Kağıthane district at 5 a.m. on Feb. 8. 

Hakan Öztürk, 37, was killed instantly at the crime scene, while 58-year-old Erol Özdemir was brought to Şişli Hamidiye Etfal Training and Research Hospital for treatment. Reports indicated the police recovered nine bullet casings from the crime scene. 

While the cause of the incident remains unclear, residents of the neighborhood alleged the teahouse was a den for gambling, an illegal activity within Turkey’s borders.

“They say the shooting was caused by animosity. I heard it had to do with gambling. People gambled in this café, it remained open until the morning,” said Ersin Bayındır, a neighborhood resident.  

Police teams were dispatched to the area where a large scale operation was launched to apprehend the attackers. 

Meanwhile, at another teahouse in neighboring Şişli district, a café owner shot one of his customers after engaging in a quarrel.

The customer, identified as Yahya Keleş, sustained a wound to his abdomen at the teahouse in Halide Edip Adıvar neighborhood, while the assailant fled the scene. 

The victim was brought to Okmeydanı Training and Research Hospital for treatment while initial reports indicated his health was in good condition. 

The incidents marked a recent trend in Istanbul which has seen at least four people killed and several others injured over the span of a week. The shooting in Kağıthane was the fourth of its kind in recent days, as Istanbul witnessed three separate shootings on Feb. 1, Feb. 2 and Feb. 3 that killed at least three people. 

On Feb. 1, two masked men attacked a teahouse in the Kanarya neighborhood of the Küçükçekmece district with a long-barreled weapon and a handgun, killing two and wounding five others. Police reportedly detained six suspects over the attack. In a separate attack, gunmen opened fire at the site of a cultural association in Istanbul’s Eyüp district on Feb. 2, killing one and wounding three others. Finally, on Feb. 3, unidentified gunmen in a white-colored sports car with no license plate number opened fire at a teahouse in Istanbul’s Sultangazi district and injured two people.