In Turkey, the trial against Ahmet Bozkurt, the owner of the hotel that collapsed in 2023 when the country was hit by a devastating earthquake, has ended.
Bozkurt was sentenced to 18 years and five months in prison and the architect of the building, Erdem Yilmaz, received the same sentence. Bozkurt’s son, Mehmeti, was sentenced to 17 years and four months behind bars.
Three men were convicted of “causing death or injury to more than one person by willful negligence”. There were 72 people in the hotel and they all died on the spot, he writes bbc.
The Isias Hotel has been operating since 2001, but according to scientific analysis, gravel and sand from the local river were mixed with other building materials to form the pillars that support the building.
It was one of the most famous hotels in Adiyaman, but it collapsed in a few moments.
More than 50 people have died in a series of devastating earthquakes that have hit Turkey and Syria. About 160 buildings collapsed and 1.5 million people lost their homes. /Telegraph/