Two killed in mall atrium fall in Istanbul

ISTANBUL

Two people were killed when a man fell from the sixth floor of a mall and landed on a shopper below at around 2 p.m. in the Şişli district of Istanbul on Aug. 25. Cenk Tüfekçi, 47, fell over a railing into the Cevahir mall’s atrium and landed on İlhan Güven Akgemik, 30, who was walking on the mall’s ground floor, as people ran away in panic from the scene.

Tüfekçi reportedly jumped from the floor in an attempt to end his own life, according to daily Habertürk.

Mall security personnel quickly arrived at the scene and called for an ambulance.

The heavily wounded Tüfekçi and Akgemik received cardiac massages from paramedics who arrived at the scene and were taken to a nearby hospital, where Tüfekçi succumbed to his injuries. Akgemik also died a short while later.

Police have begun examining mall security cameras and were investigating whether Tüfekçi had intended to commit suicide.

Cevahir is the largest shopping mall in Europe and had made headlines previously for similar incidents of people committing suicide in the building.