Two suspects testify in Manisa mayor electric shock incident

MANISA

Manisa Mayor Ferdi Zeyrek.

Two people have testified as suspects in the ongoing investigation into Manisa Mayor Ferdi Zeyrek's accidental exposure to electric shock, Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç said on June 8.

Statements from 12 others were taken for informational purposes, Tunç said on X. A deputy chief public prosecutor and two public prosecutors have been assigned to the case, he added.

Zeyrek was exposed to electric shock on June 6 while responding to a malfunction in the pool's engine room at his home in the western city's Keçiliköy neighborhood.

Emergency crews performed CPR at the scene after his heart stopped. He was transferred to Manisa Celal Bayar University Hafsa Sultan Hospital, where resuscitation efforts continued for around 35 minutes. Doctors managed to restart his heart roughly 70 minutes after the incident.

İsmet Topçu, the hospital’s chief physician, said on June 7 that Zeyrek remained in intensive care with a condition that was “changing from moment to moment.”

Initial findings by a panel of expert witnesses said a series of technical malfunctions in the pool’s electrical installation and protection systems caused the electric shock, Tunç said.

"The detailed expert report preparation work regarding the technical examinations in question is being meticulously continued," the minister wrote. "The investigation is being carried out comprehensively to shed light on all aspects of the incident and to identify those who have any negligence or fault."

The mayor's daughter, Nehir Zeyrek, claimed the electric shock was due to negligence, saying that her father was still receiving the shock when the family reached him.

She suggested a failure in the leakage current relay system and alleged that the voltage may have been deliberately increased to prevent the circuit breaker from tripping. “If this is true, it is not neglect but disregard for people's lives,” she said.

The Chamber of Electrical Engineers (EMO) has also assigned a delegation to investigate the scene. EMO head Mahir Ulutaş said the delegation found corrosion in the electrical systems and serious design flaws in the electrical room.

“It is understood that there is a leak in the motor due to intense humidity and that the protection equipment is not doing its job,” he said, adding that a detailed report would be issued soon.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli were among several political leaders who contacted main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Özgür Özel to extend their well-wishes for Zeyrek's recovery.