The İstanbul 33rd Criminal Court of First Instance Tuesday fined Mohammed Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, son of Somalia’s president, 27,300 Turkish lira over causing death by negligence, according to state media Anadolu Agency.

Mohamud negligently caused the death of Yunus Emre Göçer, a motorcycle courier, on November 30, 2023 when the car he drove collided with Göçer in Türkiye. Göçer sustained injuries and subsequently passed away 6 days later. Prosecutors issued an international arrest warrant for Mohamud as he had left Türkiye.

The court first sentenced Mohamud to three years in prison after finding him guilty of causing death by negligence. It then commuted his sentence to 2 years and 6 months in prison in accordance with Article 62 of the Turkish Penal Code. The court said that it considered his social relations, post-trial behavior and the potential repercussions of the sentence on him. The court subsequently converted his prison sentence to a fine of 27,300 Turkish lira, after considering his personality and expressed remorse during trial.

In response to Mohamud’s fine, President of the Courier Rights Association Mesut Çeki criticized the court’s ruling, saying that the death of a person should not be worth 27,300 Turkish lira.

President of Somalia Hassan Sheikh Mohamud previously told AP news on December 12, 2023 that he would “do everything that [he] can” to ensure his son respects Turkish law. He also said that he respects the law and would not permit anyone to violate Türkiye’s judicial system.

Türkiye and Somalia have maintained close ties with each other since the Ottoman Empire. Former president of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited Somalia in August 2011 to support Somalia during its drought crisis. Türkiye has also provided Somalia with humanitarian and technical development assistance.