A Turkish court has jailed former Tunceli governor Tuncay Sonel on charges including evidence tampering in a long-running investigation into the 2020 disappearance of university student Gülistan Doku, Turkish Minute reported.
Sonel, who was detained on April 17, was arrested on April 21 after being referred to court by prosecutors following questioning.
He faces charges including “destroying, concealing or altering evidence,” marking a significant escalation in a case that has drawn years of criticism over alleged mishandling.
In his testimony Sonel admitted that he sent a SIM card belonging to Doku to a police officer under his protection instead of submitting it to prosecutors.
“I wanted to obtain the location information and learn where the last contact had taken place as soon as possible,” he said, adding that the decision was made while search and rescue efforts were ongoing.
Sonel denied allegations that he had ordered the deletion of security camera footage and hospital records, saying he had “no knowledge” of such actions and that any missing footage should be addressed by the university.
He also rejected accusations linking his son to Doku’s disappearance, calling them slander.
The investigation, launched into allegations including murder, destruction of evidence, deletion of digital data and abuse of office, has led to the detention of 15 suspects, 10 of whom have been jailed pending trial.
Among those jailed are Sonel’s son, Mustafa Türkay Sonel, who was detained in İstanbul on April 14 and arrested on April 18, and Şükrü Eroğlu, who served as the governor’s bodyguard at the time.
Other suspects in pretrial detention include Doku’s boyfriend, Zeinal Abakarov, as well as his mother and stepfather, former state hospital chief physician Çağdaş Özdemir and former police officer Gökhan Ertok, who is accused of deleting SIM card data.
A fugitive suspect, Umut Altaş, is believed to be in the United States, with a Red Notice issued for his arrest.
Sonel, who served as governor of Tunceli from 2017 to 2020, was suspended from his current post as a civil inspector following the launch of the investigation.
Doku, a 21-year-old student at Munzur University, went missing on January 5, 2020, after leaving her dormitory in Tunceli. Her phone was last detected near a bridge over the Uzunçayır Dam, but her body has never been found.
Prosecutors have said they are reviewing new evidence, including confidential witness testimony, social media and phone data and more than 700 hours of surveillance footage.
New testimony has brought forward allegations linking suspects to a possible killing, according to statements given to prosecutors.
Silar Altaş, the brother of fugitive suspect Umut Altaş, told prosecutors that his brother had described a conversation in which Mustafa Türkay Sonel allegedly said he had shot a woman following a dispute related to pregnancy. Altaş said he believed the victim referred to was Doku.
He also said his brother had been afraid to come forward earlier and suggested that multiple individuals may have been involved in concealing the incident, including people linked to the former governor’s circle.
Prosecutors said there is “strong suspicion” that Mustafa Türkay Sonel may have committed the crime, citing witness testimony and technical findings.
Doku was last seen after an argument with her boyfriend, and surveillance footage later showed her sitting on a bridge over a reservoir. Prosecutors initially considered suicide, but her body was never found, and her family rejected that conclusion, saying the investigation had failed to determine what had happened.
Recent arrests, including that of the former governor and his son, represent the most substantial developments in the case in years.
