The woman who was doused with boiling oil by her husband Yilmaz D. (43) in February was briefly out of the hospital on Wednesday to attend the court case against her ex at the court in Den Bosch. The woman was burned for twenty percent and was in an artificial coma for weeks after something went horribly wrong in their home in Helmond on February 26. The two got into an argument and Yilmaz threw hot oil on her twice.
Fat causes deep burns and this became apparent in court on Wednesday. The burns on her face and hands were clearly visible when the woman came forward to read her victim statement.
So it was certainly not a Christmas story in court. Yilmaz and his ex met again after ten months. He has been in jail for 298 days and she is visibly badly mutilated.
Many operations behind me
The woman wanted to show her ex what he had done. And, not by accident, as he insists, but on purpose. The woman has already undergone many operations and many more will follow. She emotionally explained how difficult that is for her, especially because she also has a 14-year-old daughter.
“I have pain and itching and can barely sleep,” she said. “I don’t even know when I can leave the hospital again. “This was not an accident. You wanted me dead on February 26th. I was sitting at the table for breakfast and unexpectedly you threw hot oil on me. You grabbed me and hit my face and then you threw hot oil on me again.”
Yilmax maintained throughout the hearing that he had not done it on purpose. According to him, he wanted to empty the pan on the floor. Out of anger, because she was annoying. The two were divorcing and the woman found Yilmaz sickly jealous. She didn’t want to share her cleaning schedule with him.
Yilmaz stated that he wanted to throw the oil on the ground. That in itself is a humiliation, because she would have to clean it up in his eyes. He accidentally bumped the edge of the kitchen table, causing the oil to fly over the woman.
The judges and the public prosecutor had great difficulty with this ‘accident’. And also the fact that the man didn’t even call 911 and went to his brother. It is fortunate that the woman was put in the shower at a neighbor’s house, otherwise the burns would have been much worse.
Who makes fries on Monday morning?
Yilmaz had just lived in the Netherlands for a year and was still working on his residence permit. His story about the events in the kitchen seemed strange and artificial and had a hint of honor killing about it. Who makes fries on a Monday morning at ten o’clock, the judges wondered. But, Yilmaz had an answer for everything: “I was free and wanted to have a big breakfast. And fries are very common in the morning in Turkish culture.”
And so it went on for a while. In the meantime it became clear that Yilmaz was going through a divorce and followed his wife everywhere. He wanted to know everything about her and was suspicious of messages she received from other men. Friends of the woman had long been concerned about the woman’s safety.
According to Yilmaz, the argument in the kitchen on February 26 was caused by his wife. He wanted to know her work schedule and she wouldn’t give it. The fact that he wanted to throw oil on the PVC floor out of envy also raised eyebrows in the courtroom. Yilmaz was a chef at his brother’s restaurant and should know what damage boiling oil can do, including to himself.
The oil was high on the wall
But, Yilmaz didn’t have a scratch. The rest of the kitchen was full of oil, especially where his wife had been sitting. The oil was also high on the wall and even in the pets’ food bowls. It was discussed in detail how this could be done in the event of an accident.
The prosecutor knew the answer. Yilmaz D. did this on purpose and tried to take his wife’s life. She called it ‘gross and reprehensible’. The Portuguese woman was kept in a coma for weeks in hospital in Rotterdam and her family was told there was a significant chance she would die.
It didn’t get that far, but the woman was mutilated for the rest of her life. The burns have changed her life completely and she will never be able to do everything she loves again. She therefore demanded one and a half euros in damages.
The officer went one step further. As far as she is concerned, Yilmaz should spend eight years in prison for the attempt to kill her with hot oil. In addition, he is not allowed to come near her for five years.
The court will rule in this case on January 22.