Minibus in Özgecan Aslan murder to be used as school shuttle

HATAY

The minibus in which 20-year-old university student Özgecan Aslan was brutally murdered has been bought to serve as a school bus, Turkish media reported.

Aslan was killed on Feb. 11 in a minibus that she boarded outside a shopping mall in Mersin’s Tarsus district to head home after a day of classes. The driver of the minibus, Suphi Altındöken, has confessed to the murder.

Daily Habertürk reported March 19 that the minibus had recently been sold in the neighboring Hatay province for 17,000 Turkish Liras, 6,000 liras lower than the market price.

According to the report, the new owner applied to change the license plate of the minibus, which he planned to use as a shuttle to carry students between downtown Hatay and the university in the province.

“I didn’t know that it was the vehicle used in the Özgecan murder. Perhaps I can sell it quickly to get rid of it now,” the new owner said when he learned about the history of the vehicle from the report.

The crime scene carries the marks of the murder, the newspaper added. A seat where Aslan hit her head while trying to resist the alleged rape attempt by Altındöken is still broken.

Altındöken, 26, confessed to the murder, saying he had sent his friend to find gasoline to help him burn the body.

Aslan’s burned body was found in a riverbed two days after her family reported her missing, triggering nationwide demonstrations urging authorities to prevent sexual crimes and protect women’s lives and freedoms.