Loved ones organize convoy to demand justice for car crash victim

Duvar English

Deceased Oğuz Murat Acı’s friends and family on March 10 organized a “justice convoy” for the victim, who died after an underage driver crashed into a group tending to their broken-down vehicle on the emergency lane. 

The convoy made up of dozens of off-road vehicles passed in front of T.C.’s home, blaring sirens and horns, according to reporting by the Demirören News Agency (DHA).

The group then left flowers at the scene of the accident and arrived at Acı’s grave for a memorial. The victim’s mother and wife attended the memorial. 

Acı’s relative Burak Yıldırım said all they wanted was T.C. and his mother’s return. “We have no ill will. We just want them to submit to justice. Please come back,” he pleaded. Acı’s mother Pervin Acı repeated these demands. 

Friend Selahattin Çobanoğlu commemorated Acı, “He was a good person, a good friend with a good heart. Now we should seek justice for him.”

He noted the chilling aspects of the incident. “Aside from the accident, we are faced with a parent who confiscated the victims’ phones upon arriving at the scene, let alone calling for help.”

“Our brother Oğuz had a mother, a father, a beautiful baby, and a wife of his own. However, he was ripped off from them by a spoiled person,” he continued.  

The crowd declared they would continue demanding justice until the driver and his “accomplice” parents received a fitting punishment. 

What had happened?

On March 1, 17-year-old T.C. crashed into a group of ATV drivers who had stopped in the emergency lane, as he was riding with friends in Istanbul. 

The driver fled the scene and left the country for Egypt with his mother Eylem Tok hours after the accident, sparking outrage.  

The five victims were hospitalized, and 29-year-old Oğuz Murat Acı died in hospital. Another victim remains in critical condition. 

Lawyers of the victims alleged that Tok confiscated the phones of the unconscious victims when she arrived at the scene to pick up T.C. 

Mother Eylem Tok has refused allegations about her confiscating the phones. However, the allegations were confirmed when the family’s driver on March 9 handed in one of the victim’s phones to the police. 

Tok on March 5 released a statement from Egypt and said she acted upon “motherly instinct” when helping his son escape the country. She ensured they would return to Turkey and “submit themselves to justice” once the dust settled down. 

Turkish authorities learned that the mother and son left Egypt for the US. T.C. was seen carrying a US passport in one security camera footage. 

Turkey began an extradition demand process for the two, stated Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç.