Labor union chair shot dead in Turkey’s Sakarya province
SAKARYA
Turkey Petroleum Chemistry and Tire Industry Workers (Lastik-İş) President Abdullah Karacan has been shot dead in the northwestern province of Sakarya, local media reported on Nov. 13.
Karacan and two other Lastik-İş officials were hospitalized after being shot during a visit to the Goodyear factory in the district of Arifiye, according to reports.
The labor union leader was pronounced dead at the Sakarya University Hospital.
The suspect, a worker at the factory, started quarrelling with Karacan and two other Lastik-İş executives, complaining about his position at the workplace being changed. At the peak of the heightened tension, he grabbed Karacan’s gun and started shooting at the three men.
The police caught the suspect while he was trying to escape by taxi and detained him. An investigation has been launched into the incident.
Lastik-İş has five branches across the country and most of its 13,000 members work at the factories of international brands in the provinces of Kocaeli and Sakarya.
