Arsonist jailed for 9 years
AN ARSONIST who set fire to a restaurant was jailed for nine years by a panel of judges at Gazimağusa Assize Court.
They gave Gürcan Atik the “exemplary” sentence after he was found guilty of entering his old business İnciraltı Restaurant, run by Hasan Caner, on March 28, 2020, stealing money and belongings from it before setting the restaurant ablaze.
Senior Judge Toroslu, speaking on behalf of the panel of judges, said that Mr Atik “recklessly and without hesitation” committed the crimes with the “intent of harming the complainant”.
Judge Toroslu stated that Mr Atik entered İnciraltı Restaurant through an “open door” at 5.35am on the date in question, “stole cash and belongings, poured a flammable alcohol disinfectant and set it on fire to cause deliberate damage”.
As a result of the fire, the restaurant suffered a “loss of 1.85 million TL” and the owner could only recover
650,000 TL from his insurance company for the damage, the court was told.
Considering the “magnitude of the damage caused by the arson”, the judge said that the “stolen amount was not recovered either” and emphasised that the defendant should be given an “effective and deterrent” punishment.
Arson is a “serious and grave crime that carries a [maximum] life sentence” Judge Toroslu told the court, adding that the crime of “intentional damage” attracts up to three years in prison.
After “carefully considering all the circumstances and conditions related to the matter”, the judge stated that the “only sentence to be handed down to the accused is imprisonment” of nine years.