Rest turned into a prison: 7 Ukrainians have not been released from Turkey for 2 weeks due to the suicide of a tourist

Tragedy while hiking in the mountains. Ukrainians are stuck in Turkey due to suicide, reports BBC.

Photo: Shutterstock

Seven Ukrainian tourists have been unable to leave Turkey for several weeks after one of their group members committed suicide.

According to the participant of the hike, Irina Gromyko, a group of Ukrainian tourists arrived in Turkey on October 15 to walk along the popular Lycian Trail. However, even before the start of the campaign, on October 17, one of the group members committed suicide.

The interrogations of the group members continued for more than 12 hours, after which the court banned seven Ukrainians from leaving Turkey until the completion of the forensic medical examination.

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Later they found out that they were not witnesses in the case, but suspects, says Irina.

The members of the group cannot leave for Ukraine, they save on everything, they run out of money, and some may lose their jobs.

“Nobody tells us a specific date. Maybe a week, maybe a month. On Saturday, I made a post on Facebook to somehow influence the situation and speed it up,” says Irina Gromyko.

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko confirmed the information about Ukrainians stuck in Turkey. And he noted that diplomats are working to expedite the return of Ukrainian citizens home.

How did this happen?

Irina Gromyko said that the tragedy took place on a beach near Oludeniz.

One of the group members was in a difficult psychological state, was awake, constantly calling friends and relatives.

Other tourists noticed this and tried not to lose sight of him, but at one point the man separated from the group and stuck a knife into his carotid artery.

Still alive, he was taken to the hospital, where he died.

“There was a Russian-speaking witness to the tragedy. Not a member of our group, who said that he saw everything with his own eyes, but the police did not take any statements or contact information from him,” she notes.

The body of the Ukrainian was returned to Ukraine and was buried on October 22.

According to Irina Gromyko, at first the tourists were promised to complete the investigation in one week, then in two, and then the term became indefinite.

They turned to the Ukrainian consulate the next day after the trial, as advised by Turkish law enforcement officers. They said to find out the progress of the case through inquiries from the Ukrainian consul.

“The consulate did not help us with anything, they only advised a lawyer who lives in another city. And just to come to Fethiye, where the court is located, the lawyer asked for $250,” says Irina Gromyko.

According to her, for the last three weeks, members of the group “Ukrainians in Fethiye” have been helping tourists. They tried to help with translation and find out about the progress of the case through friends among Turkish law enforcement officers.

On October 26, the tourists were unable to return to Ukraine as planned due to the fact that they could not leave the country during the investigation.

“Only yesterday, after posting on Facebook, we received a call from the consulate and asked for the case number; they promised to make requests to the court starting Monday. And today there was another call,” says Irina Gromyko.

She notes that a daughter and an elderly mother are waiting for her at home, so she cannot afford to be in Turkey for several months, awaiting the conclusions of the investigation.

“I have already taken leave at my own expense and may lose my job. This is very critical for me,” says Irina Gromyko.

What they say in the Foreign Ministry

Back in mid-October, after the tragedy, the consulate of Ukraine in Antalya informed the tourists that they did not influence the situation, and the investigation would approximately last two weeks.

Consul of Ukraine in Antalya Emir Rustamov said that the tourists themselves refused the services of a lawyer.

“To speed up the process, tourists were recommended to seek the services of a lawyer and were offered contacts of lawyers with significant experience in helping citizens of Ukraine. An answer was received from the group leader that they independently “control” the process with the prosecutor’s office and they do not need a lawyer,” he said.

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Tourists have previously complained that the recommended lawyer asked for too much fees for their services.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry assured that the diplomats are in control of the situation.

“The consuls are interacting with Turkish law enforcement officers who are conducting the investigation. They also maintain regular contact with the relatives of the deceased and tourists,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko.

According to him, the Turkish investigation is considering a version of suicide.

“At the same time, until the completion of all investigative actions, in particular, the examination of the object with which the injury was caused, the court temporarily prohibited Ukrainians from leaving Turkish territory,” the diplomat explained.

The consuls have already turned to their Turkish partners “to conduct a quick and impartial investigation into this case” and are providing consultations to Ukrainians stuck in Turkey, notes Oleg Nikolenko.

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