JOHANNESBURG – A 40-year-old Turkish fugitive accused of kidnapping and raping his then fiancée and assaulting her so severely that she suffered permanent impairment has been arrested in Isipingo, south of Durban.
The man, wanted in Türkiye over offences allegedly committed in 2010, was arrested on Thursday, 1 October, by INTERPOL South Africa’s Fugitive Investigation Team. Crime Intelligence, Isipingo police officers and private security supported the operation.
He appeared in the Umlazi Magistrate’s Court on Friday, 2 October, as Turkish authorities sought his extradition.
Police spokesperson Colonel Amanda van Wyk said the charges include rape, sexual assault, kidnapping, malicious damage to property and assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The case was initially reported to the Eskişehir Police Department in Türkiye.
Turkish authorities allege that the man kidnapped his fiancée, who was 22 at the time, and raped her over several days.
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“He also allegedly assaulted the victim by repeatedly striking her head against a wall, resulting in permanent physical and psychological impairment. The victim was 22 years old at the time of the alleged offences,” Van Wyk said.
According to police, he fled Türkiye after investigators concluded their investigation and was later traced to Isipingo.
Following an extradition request from Turkish authorities, INTERPOL’s National Central Bureau in Pretoria obtained an arrest warrant under section 5(1)(b) of South Africa’s Extradition Act.
Second Turkish fugitive arrested in ten days
The arrest follows the detention of another Turkish fugitive in Cape Town on Monday, 21 September.
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That suspect, a former primary school principal, is wanted in Türkiye on charges of sexual assault, kidnapping and intimidation involving a nine-year-old child. He has appeared in the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court.
Van Wyk said the two operations demonstrated the role of international police cooperation in tracking down suspects who flee across borders to evade justice.
Police have not named either man.
Extradition process
Both South Africa and Türkiye are parties to the European Convention on Extradition. Türkiye ratified the convention in 1960, while South Africa acceded in 2003.
Under South Africa’s Extradition Act, a magistrate conducts an enquiry to determine whether a person is liable to be surrendered and whether there is sufficient evidence to warrant prosecution in the requesting country. If those requirements are met, the magistrate commits the person to custody pending the Justice Minister’s decision on surrender.
Other fugitives traced to South Africa
The Turkish arrests follow other operations against foreign fugitives in South Africa this year.
In late February, the SAPS National Intervention Unit arrested Bulgarian national Stanislav Stamenov, 41, at his Cape Town home. He was wanted by Romanian authorities to serve a 16-year sentence for heroin trafficking and had reportedly been working as a personal trainer while subject to an INTERPOL red notice.
“It’s believed that he was hiding in Cape Town for several years,” police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said at the time.
