Story By: Feza Uzay, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash
A Turkish man who slashed his wife’s face with a box cutter because she asked for a divorce been handed a reduced 11-year sentence because of ‘good behaviour’.
Ukrainian woman Anna Butim, 28, was savagely attacked by her then-husband Mesut Ozturkmen, 45, outside a shopping centre in the Turkish city of Istanbul on 15th January.
A court handed Ozturkmen a reduced sentence this month on the basis of ‘good behaviour’.
According to the court, Ozturkmen used a box cutter to try and cut his then wife’s throat in front of a shopping centre, causing deep slashes all over her face, as seen in these gruesome images.
The court found that the only reason Ozturkmen failed to kill Anna was that one of her friends intervened and managed to pull the box cutter out of his hand.
Anna has since undergone three surgeries, and the attack has left part of her face paralysed as she is not able to move part of her lip, raise an eyebrow, or close an eyelid.
Ozturkmen was expected to be handed a 13 to 20 year sentence for ‘attempted murder’, but the sentence was reduced to 11 years and eight months by the judge due to ‘good behaviour’.
According to the news site Cumhuriyet, ‘good behaviour’ in the Turkish court system is determined by how a defendant behaves during trial, including his social relations, his attitude and even, to some extent, his appearance.
The couple married shortly after they met on Facebook in 2018. Ozturkmen reportedly lied and introduced himself as a footballer playing for an Italian club despite living with his parents in Turkey and being the father of three children.
Local news site CNN Turk said Anna decided to marry Ozturkmen believing everything he told her and moved to the Turkish province of Kocaeli.
Upon realising the lies she was told, the Ukrainian woman decided to file for divorce but feared Ozturkmen would attempt to kill her if he found out.
Anna told the suspect she was going to fly back to her home country on the pretence that she wanted to visit her mum.
However, Ozturkmen later followed her to Ukraine after realising she intended to divorce him while Anna flew back to Turkey to file the papers.
Ozturkmen was apparently none the wiser as he was still in Ukraine when he saw a social media post by Anna’s sister of her at a shopping centre in Istanbul which he recognised.
The suspect flew back to Turkey and waited for Anna at the shopping centre for two days before he saw her and allegedly assaulted her.
Anna, who was at the court and testified against her ex-husband, said: “I’m very different right now. I’m a completely different Anna now. I used to believe everyone. Now, I do not easily believe anyone. My rose-tinted glasses are shattered.”
The couple’s divorce was finalised in April, several months after the attack.
It is unclear if Ozturkmen plans to appeal the sentence.
