Suspicious death in Aydın prison

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A prisoner who was recently released from prison in the western province of Aydın has spoken about the recently revealed suspicious death of another inmate.

The former prisoner who asked not to be named told the Mezopotamya Agency (MA) that it was not possible for Yılmaz Ekinci to kill himself.

"In the observation room, they take even your shoes, let alone find something to hang himself. My opinion is that his neck was broken and then they made it look like suicide."

Ekinci, 28, who was put in the Aydın Type-E Closed Prison last July for "injury," allegedly killed himself on January 13.

The prison administration claimed that Ekinci, who was 170 centimeters tall, hanged himself from an iron bar that was 148 centimeters high from the ground.

They told Ekinci's family that he had psychological issues. The family wasn't convinced as they pointed out that the administration did not give them the camera footage showing the door of the observation room

After the death, the Aydın Chief Public Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation. In an incident report, the prison administration said Ekinci had hanged himself in the room where he had been taken to after swearing and shouting in his ward.

Security camera footage obtained by MA showed guards forcibly putting Ekinci into the observation room.

The prison, which was overcrowded during the pandemic, has a capacity of 870 people and currently has 1302 inmates.

Another suspicious death took place in the prison in 2016. Muharrem Bahçıvan's cause of death was recorded as suicide. (AS/VK)