Turkish-American woman falls victim to femicide in US

NEW JERSEY

A missing Turkish-American woman living in New Jersey was found dead in Tennessee after an alert for her son was canceled, according to the U.S. authorities.

The U.S. police issued an amber alert for Yasemin Uyar and her 2-year-old son, Sebastian, on July 9 afternoon after the tot didn’t show up for daycare and his mom didn’t arrive at work.

The police believed Uyar and Sebastian were taken by the boy’s father, 27-year-old Tyler Rios, on July 8 from her apartment against their will.

Prosecutors said on July 10 that they found the boy safe with his father at a family member’s house in a county in Tennessee, but Uyar was still missing.

Uyar’s body was found the same day in a wooded area off a highway, they said.

Neighbors and friends left flowers on the front steps of Uyar’s home a day after she was found dead.

Uyar’s family said she had a restraining order against Rios, who she has been trying to get away from, and they had a long history of domestic violence.

Uyar’s mother posted on Facebook in the hopes that “people will be more understanding of ‘families’ dealing with domestic violence.”

“Several years back, my daughter became involved with this boy who was clearly an alcoholic,” she said.

“His drunken rages have caused him to choke my daughter till she passed out,” she added.

Court records from 2018 show that Rios was previously charged with aggravated assault, theft and strangulation of a domestic violence victim.

According to the U.S. media, Rios is still in police custody in Tennessee and will be extradited to New Jersey to face charges.

Prosecutors said he would be facing a kidnapping charge in Sebastian’s alleged abduction while additional charges in connection with Uyar’s death were pending.