Man stabs mother-in-law to death in front of her house in Essen

Dilek
born: 1973
stabbed to death: January 25, 2023
Residence: Essen
Origin: Turkey
Children: at least 1 adult daughter
Perpetrator: her son-in-law (34 years old at the time of the crime)

A Turk cannot accept his wife's divorce and assaults her mother in front of her house in Essen on January 25, 2023. When she leaves the house in the morning, he stabs her. She is taken to the hospital and dies. The perpetrator is arrested at the scene; the knife is confiscated. An uninvolved witness is also injured in the crime.

The perpetrator does not live in Essen and has two minor children with the victim's daughter.

At first, it was repeatedly reported that the perpetrator was German. However, it's highly unlikely for someone who identifies solely as German to stab their mother-in-law in the street over a disagreement with their spouse. Therefore, it's possible that the perpetrator has dual nationality. The names of those involved are not known.

What is an honour killing?

An honour killing is a murder in the name of honour. If a brother murders his sister to restore family honour, it is an honour killing. According to activists, the most common reasons for honour killings are as the victim:

refuses to cooperate in an arranged marriage.
wants to end the relationship.
was the victim of rape or sexual assault.
was accused of having a sexual relationship outside of marriage.

Human rights activists believe that 100,000 honour killings are carried out every year, most of which are not reported to the authorities and some are even deliberately covered up by the authorities themselves, for example because the perpetrators are good friends with local policemen, officials or politicians. Violence against girls and women remains a serious problem in Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Iran, Serbia and Turkey.