Trial begins for 32 defendants in Türkiye’s deadly Grand Kartal Hotel fire
The first hearing in the trial of 32 defendants charged in connection with a devastating hotel fire that killed 78 people opened Monday in the Turkish ski resort town of Kartalkaya.
The Jan. 21 fire at the Grand Kartal Hotel also injured 133 people, making it one of Türkiye's deadliest hotel disasters in recent years. Prosecutors are seeking sentences of up to 1,998 years for 11 defendants, including hotel owners and municipal officials, on charges of "intentional killing and injury."
Among the 19 defendants currently in custody are hotel owner Halit Ergul, his wife and board member Emine Murtezaoglu Ergul, their daughters Elif Aras and Ceyda Hacibekiroglu, and hotel general manager Emir Aras.
The trial is being held in a converted gymnasium at Bolu Social Sciences High School due to the large number of defendants and victims' families expected to attend. The 700-seat venue was equipped with security cameras, advanced audio systems, and internet connections for the court's digital system. One thousand police officers have been deployed for security during the proceedings.