Turkish authorities arrest 5, including minors, over sexual assault of 2-year-old baby

Duvar English

In Turkey’s Tekirdağ province, authorities arrested five people including minors after discovering that a 2-year-old baby, who was taken to the hospital by their family, had been sexually abused. 

The mother took her two-year-old daughter to Malkara District State Hospital in the western province on Aug. 2. She told the doctors that the neighbor dropped the child and injured her. The baby was examined and then handed over to her family.

On Sept. 8, the family took the baby to the hospital again while she was unconscious. The doctors who examined the baby reported the situation to the police when they saw beating marks and bruises on the baby.

The baby, who was in a serious condition, was found to have a brain hemorrhage, and findings of physical violence were found on her body.

While police teams started an investigation into the incident, Tekirdağ Provincial Directorate of Family and Social Services took the other 5-year-old daughter of the family under protection. The directorate also filed a criminal complaint against the mother and stepfather.

The court has arrested the mother on charges of “neglect of a child,” along with the 13 and 14-year-old children along with the man with whom the baby was left alone, and the stepfather.

Egemen Gürcün, Head of Tekirdağ Bar Association, announced on Sept. 11 that forensic medical examinations proved that the baby had been sexually abused and that the mother was arrested for hiding this information despite knowing it.

“The mother conceals the truth by not sharing the evidence and findings she obtained with the judicial authorities even though she realized that the child was sexually abused. Subsequently, she breached her duty of care by not taking her child to the hospital for three days,” the bar head added.

The baby has been in a life-threatening condition.