A Turkish man found guilty of murdering a 33-year-old American tourist in Istanbul last year was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday, local media reported.
The body of Sarai Sierra, a mother of two, was found in February 2013 near Istanbul's ancient city walls with fatal head wounds.
In addition to his life sentence, Ziya Tasali, a homeless man aged 47, was given an additional five years and 10 months in prison for sexually assaulting Sierra, the private Dogan news agency reported.
At Tuesday's hearing, Tasali admitted to murdering Sierra but denied raping her, saying he just wanted to kiss the American woman.
Tasali, who had been described as "unstable", had been arrested after DNA tests showed that traces of blood were found on the victim's shirt.
Sierra, who had two children aged nine and 11, left the United States on January 7, for the first time in her life, to take pictures in Istanbul.
Sierra's family alerted the authorities to her disappearance after she failed to return home to New York from her holiday as planned on January 21.
Istanbul is Turkey's largest city, home to at least 15 million people and considered a relatively safe travel destination which is visited by millions of tourists every year.
A Turkish man found guilty of murdering a 33-year-old American tourist in Istanbul last year was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday, local media reported.
The body of Sarai Sierra, a mother of two, was found in February 2013 near Istanbul’s ancient city walls with fatal head wounds.
In addition to his life sentence, Ziya Tasali, a homeless man aged 47, was given an additional five years and 10 months in prison for sexually assaulting Sierra, the private Dogan news agency reported.
At Tuesday’s hearing, Tasali admitted to murdering Sierra but denied raping her, saying he just wanted to kiss the American woman.
Tasali, who had been described as “unstable”, had been arrested after DNA tests showed that traces of blood were found on the victim’s shirt.
Sierra, who had two children aged nine and 11, left the United States on January 7, for the first time in her life, to take pictures in Istanbul.
Sierra’s family alerted the authorities to her disappearance after she failed to return home to New York from her holiday as planned on January 21.
Istanbul is Turkey’s largest city, home to at least 15 million people and considered a relatively safe travel destination which is visited by millions of tourists every year.
