Court releases detailed reasoning for life sentence in Güllü murder case

The court has published the 25-page reasoned decision in the case of singer Gül Tut, known as Güllü, who died after falling from a window in Yalova. Tuğyan Ülkem Gülter, the victim's daughter, was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for the intentional killing of a woman and an ascendant.

Gül Tut fell from the window of her six-storey home on Vali Akı Street in the Harmanlar neighbourhood of Çınarcık district on 26 September 2025 at around 01:26. Her daughter Tuğyan Ülkem Gülter and friend Sultan Nur Ulu, who were in the house that night, were taken into custody after the incident.

“She grabbed her mother from behind by the upper arm and threw her out of the window.”

Tuğyan Ülkem Gülter was arrested on 13 December 2025 on charges of intentional killing. The first hearing took place on 1 October 2026 at Yalova 1st Heavy Penal Court, and the defendant was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment at the second hearing on 9 October. The court also decided that her detention would continue.

The reasoned decision states that only Gül Tut, her daughter Tuğyan Ülkem Gülter, and Sultan Nur Ulu were in the house at the time of the incident. Camera records from the house and the apartment building showed that no one else entered or left the building from the previous day until the time of death.

The court relied on the testimony of Sultan Nur Ulu, the sole eyewitness. Ulu stated that Gül Tut entered the room and that she saw Tuğyan Ülkem Gülter grab her mother from behind by the upper arm and throw her out of the window while she was facing a mirror. Ulu initially said she did not see the moment of the fall, but later explained that she feared the defendant would harm her and blame her.

The court found Ulu's statements, which explained the contradiction, to be consistent with each other. The decision also noted that there was no concrete motive of enmity that would require the witness to slander the defendant and that there was no other eyewitness in the room where the incident took place.