Narin was strangled to death: this is what the autopsy report issued by the Istanbul Institute of Forensic Medicine reveals and whose results have been published today by the Turkish press, confirming how the eight-year-old girl, who disappeared on 21 August and was found dead hidden in a river near her village on 8 September after an intensive search operation, was murdered.
According to Turkish media reports published today, the report issued by the Istanbul Institute of Forensic Medicine concludes that Narin’s death was the result of her neck being forcibly compressed, causing haemorrhaging in the anterior neck muscle and the lower jaw.
In addition, newspapers in Turkey have reportedly revealed that traces of the girl’s DNA found in the car driven by her uncle, Salim Güran, correspond to a liquid from her mouth which forensic experts say is indicative of strangulation; this liquid would have passed from the girl’s mouth to her uncle’s hand, from where it would have stained the seat and steering wheel of the vehicle driven by Salim.
Awaiting final forensic report
In the preliminary autopsy, 91 tissue samples were collected from the girl to establish the cause of her death and the identity of her killer, as well as possible indications of other crimes, such as sexual abuse; during this preliminary autopsy on the body – which was in an advanced state of decomposition – it was reported that there were no visible signs of sharp or bullet wounds, and no internal bleeding. Due to the state of the body, it was then impossible to determine the exact date of death.
Some of these tissue samples were forwarded after this initial autopsy – carried out a few hours after the body was found in the river – to the Institutes of Forensic Medicine in Diyarbakır and Istanbul, the latter of which is expected to issue a more comprehensive forensic report within one to two weeks. Dental samples from Narin’s mother, Yüksel Güran (in prison), are also being examined in Istanbul for comparison with the marks found on the arm of her older brother, Enes Güran.
More of Narin’s relatives sent to prison
Meanwhile, the investigation into Narin’s murder continues to determine the identity and motives of the girl’s killers. So far, 12 people remain in custody awaiting trial, including – in addition to her uncle Salim – her mother and brother; but more relatives are implicated and several of them are even accused of hindering the search during the initial disappearance of the girl by giving more than 50 false reports and testimonies, and even causing power cuts and fires to hinder the work of the investigators.
In this regard, in the last hours an aunt of Narin, Hediye Güran (wife of her uncle Fuat Güran, the owner of the car where Salim carried the girl’s body) and two cousins of the girl, İsa and Şeyma Kaya, were brought today to the Diyarbakır Courthouse for questioning by the public prosecutor’s office; after the interrogation, Narin’s two cousins were released while their aunt Hediye was sent to prison on the charge of ‘participation in premeditated murder’, after it emerged that she changed her phone a few days after the girl’s disappearance.
Thus, the current list of defendants in prison and their charges during the Narin Güran murder investigation is the following:
- Salim Güran (uncle): premeditated murder
- Yüksel Güran (mother): participation in premeditated murder
- Enes Güran (brother): participation in premeditated murder
- Nevzat Bahtiyar (neighbour): participation in premeditated murder
- Ramazan Atasoy (Salim’s worker): participation in premeditated murder
- Muhammet Kaya (cousin): accomplice to criminal act, destruction of crime evidence
- Birsen Güran (cousin): accomplice to criminal act, destruction of crime evidence
- Maşallah Güran (aunt): accomplice to criminal act, destruction of crime evidence
- Mehmet Selim Atasoy (Salim’s worker): accomplice to criminal act, destruction of crime evidence
- Mehmet Şevket Kaya (aunt’s husband): accomplice to criminal act, destruction of crime evidence
- Fuat Güran (uncle): destruction of crime evidence
- Hediye Güran (wife of Fuat Güran): participation in premeditated murder
Meanwhile, people continue to come from all over Turkey to visit Narin’s grave, for which the governor of Diyarbakır has paid for the construction of a marble tomb to replace the girl’s humble earthen grave.
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As a history lover, Pablo Gómez was captivated by Turkey from the first day he visited it in 2006: he got married there, has a house there… and has since become an expert on Turkey’s current affairs. With a long experience in media, he has been at the helm of hispanatolia.com since 2011.
