Eskişehir court gives life sentence to killer of ex‑girlfriend Deniz Oktay

The 7th Heavy Penal Court in Eskişehir sentenced Idris Gökmen to aggravated life imprisonment for the premeditated killing of his former partner, 30‑year‑old Deniz Oktay. The court rejected reductions for unjust provocation and good behaviour. Oktay had disappeared in April 2025; her body was found burned in a forest near Tepebaşı, and an autopsy showed she was first strangled and then set alight.

The Eskişehir Bar Association’s Women’s Rights Commission praised the sentence but criticised the lack of an additional “canavarca his” aggravation, saying the case warranted a harsher penalty. Gökmen expressed remorse during the hearing, claiming the victim’s behaviour had provoked the crime.

The verdict marks a significant legal outcome in a high‑profile femicide case and has drawn attention from local women's rights advocates.