Turkish Court Merges Six Officials' Trial with Ferdi Zeyrek Death Case

Former Manisa mayor Ferdi Zeyrek died on 9 June 2023 after an electric shock in the pool of his Yunusemre‑District home. A criminal investigation identified multiple safety failures in the pool’s electrical installation. The Manisa 5th Heavy Penal Court ordered that the public‑law case against six Yunusemre municipal officials – a city‑planning director, engineers, a technician and a building‑document officer – be merged with the principal case (file 2025/352) concerning Zeyrek’s death. The officials are accused of "negligent homicide and injury" under Turkish penal code articles 85/2 and 53/6.

An expert panel from Istanbul Technical University concluded that the pool’s energy room did not meet standards and that the motor and electrical components were improperly mounted. The panel identified two individuals, N. B. and H. İ., as primarily responsible. Additional suspects include site staff, maintenance workers and contractors, bringing the total number of indicted persons to ten. Some detainees have been released while others remain under travel bans or judicial control. The court postponed the hearing to 1 July pending a supplemental report from Dokuz Eylül University, as the earlier expert report has not yet been received.

The case highlights alleged negligence by municipal and private actors in the design, installation and oversight of the pool’s electrical system, and continues to proceed through the Turkish judicial process.