Somali leader offers condolences after accident involving son

ISTANBUL

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has reached out to the grieving widow of Yunus Emre Göçer, the motorcycle courier killed after a collision involving the president’s son in Istanbul two weeks ago.

The call took place during a condolence visit by Somali Defense Minister Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur, who was at the office of İyaz Çimen, the lawyer representing the Göçer family, when the Somali leader expressed his condolences to Öznur Göçer.

The president assured her that "he has full confidence in the Turkish justice system," emphasizing that the legal process would unfold as it should.

Yunus Emre Göçer lost his life on Dec. 6, six days after being struck by a car driven by Mohamed Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on a busy Istanbul highway. The initial report on the incident had attributed full blame to Göçer, and the president's son was released after providing a statement at the police station.

However, after the emergence of footage capturing the accident, the chief public prosecutor's office in Istanbul sought a second report on Dec. 7. This second report contradicted the first, absolving Göçer of fault and placing full responsibility on the younger Mohamud. An arrest warrant was subsequently issued for him.

However, it was revealed that he had left Türkiye on Dec. 2, prompting Türkiye's Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç to engage in discussions with Somali authorities to bring the younger Mohamud back for trial. Tunç also said the case would be sent to the forensic medicine institution for a new report to reconcile the discrepancies between the first two reports.

The latest forensic report has brought a fresh perspective to the case, diverging from the initial assessments. According to the findings, Mohamed Hassan Sheikh Mohamud is now deemed primarily at fault, with the 38-year-old courier considered secondarily responsible. The report highlights Mohamud's failure to acknowledge Göçer, neglect to apply brakes and maintain a safe following distance. Additionally, it underscores that Göçer did not conduct sufficient mirror checks when changing lanes.

In an interview with The Associated Press, the Somali president defended his son's departure, asserting that it was due to business commitments. “He still is linked to the country, and I am talking to him to go back and presenting himself to the court,” the president said on Dec. 14. But his son is an adult, and “the decision is his – but I am giving that advice,” he added.