Overturned sentence in brutal femicide faces objection
ANKARA

The chief public prosecutor’s office at the Court of Appeals has challenged a ruling that overturned the aggravated life sentence for the man convicted of murdering university student Pınar Gültekin in 2020.
A criminal chamber of the high court previously overturned the sentence against Cemal Metin Avcı, igniting widespread criticism. The ruling on Feb. 2 said he had not acted with "monstrous feelings and premeditation" in killing Gültekin and should receive an unjust provocation reduction in sentencing.
In its objection, the prosecutor’s office argued that Avcı had decided to kill Gültekin "with perseverance and insistence" and called for the reinstatement of the aggravated life sentence.
The chamber will review the objection and may either uphold the original sentence or maintain its ruling, in which case the file will be sent to the Court of Appeals’ general assembly of criminal chambers.
Gültekin went missing on July 16, 2020, in the southwestern city of Muğla. Five days later, Avcı confessed to strangling her, burning her body in a barrel and covering it with concrete. A forensic report later revealed that Gültekin had been burned alive.
The Gültekin family's lawyer, Rezan Epözdemir, denounced the chamber's ruling as a "legal freak."
"The fundamental goal of criminal law is rehabilitation, but releasing a defendant who committed such a brutal murder back into society will deeply wound the public conscience and that of the victim's family," he said in a post on X. "Our legal struggle will continue until justice is served."
Avcı had previously received a reduced sentence of 23 years with an unjust provocation reduction.
However, the chief public prosecutor's office in Muğla appealed the ruling, and a regional court in İzmir later handed down an aggravated life sentence for deliberately killing with "monstrous feelings and premeditation."
That court had determined that Avcı should not receive reductions for unjust provocation or good conduct.
Pınar Gültekin's father, Sıddık Gültekin, condemned the overturning of his life sentence and vowed to continue seeking justice.
"The Court of Appeals acted as if this was a normal death, trying to reduce the sentence at all costs," he told local media.
"We absolutely do not accept this decision. This poor girl was burned alive. How else could this crime be described except as monstrous?"
He warned that the ruling would erode public trust in the justice system. "How did their conscience allow such a decision?" he asked.