ISTANBUL, Turkey (A.W)—An 80-year –old Armenian woman was the victim of a recent assault in Istanbul’s Ferikoy neighborhood on Aug. 17, reported Agos.
Markırıt Camkosoğlu
The victim was Markırıt Camkosoğlu, who lived alone. The assault happened in her apartment on Savash Street.
Camkosoğlu recounted the following to Agos: “On my way home from the supermarket, I noticed a stranger standing at the entrance of the building. At first, I was not suspicious. The man was of medium height, and was dark and ugly. I thought he was one of the neighbors and was going upstairs. The building I live in is massive, and so it is impossible to recognize everyone. However, as soon as I opened my apartment door, the man attacked me. I fell on the floor, and as I lay there, he started hitting me in the head. I believe he attempted to murder me. I don’t know his voice—he did not say a single word to me to hide his identity. After beating me, he stole my purse, which was on the table and which contained only 70 Turkish liras. Then, he ran away.”
Camkosoğlu added that she had been living in her apartment for 50 years, and this was the first time that such an incident had taken place.
During the investigation, the neighbors stated that the attacker must have been familiar with the entrance to the building. Moreover, he knew that Camkosoğlu lived by herself. For these reasons, he had chosen to attack at a time the building was calmest in terms of foot traffic.
This incident is reminiscent of earlier attacks on old Armenian women that took place in the Samatia district of Istanbul between December 2012 and January 2013. One of these earlier assaults led to the death of Maritsa Küçük.
Police apprehended a suspect, Murat Nazaryan in March 2012. His trial is ongoing, although Nazaryan claims he has no memory of assaulting the women, and that his initial confession was extracted under psychological duress. The lawyers representing Maritsa Küçük’s family have demanded the court to launch a broader investigation into the issue.