istanbul
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Turkish police are investigating after a family of four died of suspected poisoning while on vacation in Istanbul.
The Becek family, who were visiting from Hamburg in Germany, fell ill on November 12 after spending the day sightseeing in one of Istanbul’s main tourist attractions and eating street food, Turkish state news agency Anadolu Agency said.
The family was initially treated for what appeared to be food poisoning and released from the hospital, but later returned with worsening symptoms.
The two children, Kadir, 6, and Masaru, 3, died on Thursday, followed by their mother, 27-year-old Chigdem, the following day. Her father, Serbet, 38, remained in critical condition over the weekend and died on Monday, Anadolu Agency reported.
Authorities initially attributed the deaths to food poisoning and raided the stalls in Istanbul’s lively Ortakoy district.
But on Saturday, investigators shifted their focus to pesticide poisoning after two more tourists who had stayed at the same hotel as the Becek family were hospitalized. Turkish media reported that a product used to kill bed bugs was sprayed in a room on the ground floor and may have reached the family’s room through the hotel’s ventilation system.
Hotels in Istanbul’s Old City have been closed by municipal authorities pending the outcome of the investigation. Forensic teams flooded the hotel on Saturday, Anadolu said, taking samples from bed sheets, pillows, water bottles and blankets.
Preliminary forensic reports say environmental toxins are likely the culprit, although further analysis is needed to get a concrete answer, Anadolu reported.
“Taking into account the circumstances of the incident, their medical history, the latest information available, and the fact that two other people staying at the same hotel were hospitalized with similar symptoms, it is most likely that the mother, father, and children died from chemical poisoning caused by the environment of the hotel where they were staying, and less likely from food poisoning related to what they ingested,” the report said, according to Anadolu Agency.
Seven of the 11 suspects detained by Turkish police have been taken to the main court in Istanbul and are awaiting further processing.
The family was buried in their ancestral town of Bolbadin in central Türkiye. While receiving condolences from mourners, Čigdem’s father, Mehmet Çelik, told Turkish media that his daughter had recently finished renovating her summer home and hoped to live there someday.
“They died in it without being able to sleep,” he said.
