Adana, Turkey. The owner of an apartment building that collapsed in Adana, killing 96 people, has had his prison sentence reduced on appeal from 865 years to 22.5 years. Hasan Alpargun had attempted to flee to Cyprus in the hours after the collapse.
Building collapse and flight to northern Cyprus
Alpargun owned the Alpargun apartment building in Adana, which collapsed on February 6, 2023, after two earthquakes struck the region.
Adana is more than 180 kilometres from the first earthquake’s epicentre and more than 210 kilometres from the second, and 11 apartment buildings in the city of over 1.8 million people collapsed that day.
After the collapse, an arrest warrant was issued for Alpargun, and it was determined he had flown from Adana to northern Cyprus’ Ercan (Tymbou) airport on the day of the earthquakes.
According to Turkey’s Anadolu Agency, he then tried to transfer $990,000, €890,000, and 500,000TL from a bank account in Turkey to a bank account in the north, before attempting to buy an apartment in northern Nicosia.
Turkish police located him, and he surrendered to the Turkish Cypriot police shortly afterwards. He was returned to Adana and arrested on February 13, 2023.
Appeal overturns key conviction
In September last year, Adana’s 12th high criminal court handed Alpargun 62 concurrent life sentences, totalling 865 years, for causing the death of more than one person with possible intent.
Adana’s provincial court of justice overturned that verdict and returned the case to the 12th high criminal court. Following an appeal, his conviction for causing death by probable intent was overturned, leading to a significantly reduced sentence of 22.5 years.
Other cases linked to the earthquakes
Alpargun’s case is among numerous similar cases examined by Turkey’s judiciary in the three years since the earthquakes.
One of the most high-profile cases involved the collapse of the Isias hotel in Adiyaman, where the Famagusta Turk Maarif Koleji middle school volleyball team had been staying. The collapse killed 72 people, including 35 Cypriots, of whom 24 were children.
How do you think courts should assess responsibility for building collapses following major earthquakes?
