health
4 people convicted over insecticide deaths of tourist family during reported bedbug infestation at Istanbul hotel
A Turkish court on Friday convicted three pest control company workers and a hotel owner over the deaths of a family of four from Germany who were poisoned by insecticide while on vacation in Istanbul, sentencing them to between 18 and 12 years in prison, state media reported.
TL;DR
- A Turkish court convicted three pest control workers and a hotel owner over the insecticide poisoning deaths of a German family of four in Istanbul.
- The family, staying at the Harbour Suites Old City hotel, died in November after complaining of nausea and vomiting.
- Investigators believe insecticide gas, used to combat a bedbug infestation, seeped into the family's room through a ventilation duct.
- The hotel owner was sentenced to 13 years and four months for causing multiple deaths through negligence.
- Pest control company owners received 18-year sentences each, and an employee received a 12-year sentence.
- Traces of phosphine gas, a highly toxic substance, were found on samples taken from the hotel.
- The deaths raised concerns about hotel safety standards in Turkey.