16 June 2025
The Kahramanmaraş Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation against BirGün reporter İsmail Arı. The fugitive defendants of the Ezgi Apartment case—Sami Kervancıoğlu and Mustafa Pekel, who have been at large for about 650 days and face hundreds of years in prison over the building collapse that killed 35 people—filed a complaint against Arı through their lawyer. They accused him of “attempting to influence a fair trial,” “publicly disseminating misleading information” (Article 217/A of the Turkish Penal Code), “violating the confidentiality of the investigation,” and “defamation” through his reporting. As part of the investigation, Arı gave a statement at the Çankaya District Police Department in Ankara.