A disturbing video has surfaced depicting a man tracking down his former wife inside a hospital in south-central Turkey before fatally shooting her. The footage, obtained by NewsX, captures the harrowing moment when 44-year-old Atilla Ayintapli shot his ex-wife, Eser Karaca, 42, at the private hospital where she worked as a medical secretary. Just hours prior to the incident, Karaca had obtained a restraining order against him.
In the CCTV footage from May, Ayintapli is seen entering the office armed with a shotgun. Despite Karaca’s attempt to flee to a nearby room with a colleague upon seeing him, he relentlessly pursued them while bystanders fled in fear in the opposite direction.
Tragically, in her final moments, Karaca raised her hands in a futile effort to protect herself from the attack. Ayintapli callously fired additional shots at her lifeless body, as reported by the Mirror US.
Following the brutal act, Ayintapli fled the scene while Karaca’s colleagues rushed to her aid, distraught at the horrific scene. Despite being taken to the emergency room at the same hospital where she worked, Karaca succumbed to her injuries.
Authorities revealed that Karaca had filed a fourth restraining order on the morning of the shooting due to Ayintapli stalking her in an attempt to reconcile despite past abuse. Tragically, he shot her just before the order could be served.
Turkish police promptly apprehended Ayintapli, who now faces charges for Karaca’s murder and for threatening her colleague with a weapon. During interrogation, he confessed to the crime and is awaiting trial after being taken to court. Prosecutors are pursuing a life sentence against him.
The issue of femicides, the killing of women and girls based on their gender, has been on the rise in Turkey. A controversial ruling in August by Turkey’s highest court stated that a man could receive a reduced sentence for killing a woman if she “provoked him by refusing to have sex,” sparking outrage among campaigners and legal experts who warn of dangerous precedents and systemic issues in Turkey’s handling of femicides.