A court has ordered the arrest of a man on May 18 for verbally and physically assaulting three women on the street in the Mediterranean province of Antalya, putting out a cigarette on one of them.
The 20-year-old daughter, Dilay Özel, said in her testimony that the attack occurred at around 18.40 p.m. local time when she, her mother and aunt were walking home.
B. T., the assailant, rounded on the women by saying, "What kind of a country has this become! Women are smoking on the street, like b…e."
Özel states that there was no one around at the time, and her mother opposed the man, saying, "Are you talking to us? This is a free country, and you have no say on my cigarette."
B. T. jumped down Özel’s mother, punched her in the chest then. When Özel intervened, he stubbed his cigarette on young woman’s neck and ran away. The women ran after the assailant for about 5 blocks, and with the help of the citizens around, they caught him.
According to the forensic report, Özel had a second-degree burn, and she stated that the doctor told her the scar would be permanent.
“I will carry the scar of that attacker on my throat for the rest of my life. It has come to a point where we cannot even walk on the street. We will sue [him],” Dilay Özel told reporters.
After his interrogation at the police quarters, the suspect was referred to the court, where he testified to the judge but was released shortly after.
The assailant was taken into custody, and he was released after his testimony at the police quarters. However, with the reactions to the incident in the following hours, the assailant was detained on and arrested for “intentionally causing injury,” “insults” and “uttering threats.
