Syrian Kurdish fighters hand murder suspect to Turkey after catching him in Syria

ŞIRNAK - Doğan News Agency

DHA Photo

Kurdish fighters from the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Syria have reportedly handed over a Syrian refugee, who was being sought in connection to a murder in Turkey, to authorities in the southeastern Turkish province of Şırnak.

Hogir Hadjo, a 24-year-old Syrian refugee who had fled to Şırnak’s İdil district two years ago to escape civil war in his country, was sought by Turkish police over murder allegations.

Hadjo is accused of killing Abdurrahman Gözmen, a 55-year-old bus company manager, in İdil on Jan. 5. He allegedly committed the murder with a pump action rifle in return for 5,000 Turkish Liras, upon the demand of Gözmen’s former business partner.

The Turkish police detained eight people, including Gözmen’s former business partner Şükrü Aşkın, on charges of aiding and abetting murder in raids on Jan. 29, but they failed to find Hadjo.

Police later learned that he had returned to his hometown of Qamishli, a northeastern Syrian province on the border with Turkey.

The victim’s family then traveled to Syria and asked YPG militants in Qamishli to find the suspect.

On Feb. 19, the YPG members brought Hadjo to Syria’s border with Turkey, where they handed him over to the authorities.

Hadjo, who denied the allegations against him, was arrested by a local court on Feb. 20.