A Turkish man sentenced to life imprisonment for pushing his seven-month-pregnant wife off a 1,000-foot cliff in an alleged insurance payout plot has been released from prison after serving six years, triggering outrage among women’s rights groups.According to the New York Post, Hakan Aysal, 45, was freed from a high-security prison while Turkey’s Supreme Court’s Criminal General Assembly reviews an appeal against his life sentence. He was convicted in October 2022 for the 2018 death of his wife, Semra Aysal, 32.The incident took place at the popular Butterfly Valley tourist destination near Muğla in southwestern Turkey. Prosecutors alleged that Hakan pushed his pregnant wife off the cliff after the couple took selfies together at the scenic location.Prosecutors argued that Aysal had taken out an accident insurance policy worth $25,000 in his wife’s name, listing himself as the sole beneficiary. They alleged that he collected the money following her death.Aysal has maintained his innocence, claiming that he did not push his wife and that she disappeared after he turned his back on her. His lawyers and Supreme Court Chief Prosecutor Ömer Taş have argued that there was insufficient convincing evidence to support his conviction.His lawyer described the release as the end of six years of what he called unjust imprisonment, including around four years in solitary confinement, according to Turkish newspaper Cumhuriyet.
Release sparks outrage
The decision has drawn criticism from women’s rights groups, who have raised concerns about accountability in cases involving violence against women.“The decision is extremely worrying, not only for this case but also in terms of the evaluation of evidence in femicide cases and the debates surrounding impunity,” lawyer Hediye Gökçe Baykal told Cumhuriyet.The women’s wing of Turkey’s New Party also demanded justice for Semra and her unborn child.“A woman and her seven-month-old unborn baby lost their lives. The defendant, who received an aggravated life sentence, is now free,” the group said.A witness who recorded footage of the couple shortly before the incident reportedly told police that Aysal appeared “unusually calm” after his wife fell from the cliff.The witness, Recep Sahin, said there had been little interaction between the couple before the incident.