Istanbul, Nov 16, (dpa/GNA) – Several days after a German mother and her two children died while on holiday in Istanbul, presumably due to food poisoning, the case remains a mystery, as authorities search for answers in many directions.
An initial autopsy of all three provided little useful information and laboratory results are still pending, according to a report by the Anadolu news agency.
Most recently, the family’s hotel came under scrutiny after two other tourists were admitted to hospital with symptoms of poisoning. Authorities evacuated the hotel in the Fatih district on Saturday evening, sealed off the building and relocated the guests.
Official information shows there has been no unusual increase in cases of food poisoning in Istanbul.
According to media reports, eight suspects have now been arrested, all of whom have prior convictions, though it was not clear for which crimes.
Four street food vendors were arrested on Friday and accused of negligent homicide, Andalou reported.
The family fell sick after eating stuffed mussels from a street vendor, as well as soup and a dish made from calf intestines, known in Turkish as kokoreç, at another shop, according to the Sabah newspaper.
Three more suspects were arrested on Saturday, including a hotel manager, and most recently a baker from the area around the hotel. It was unclear whether the arrests were related. The authorities did not initially comment.
The police forensic team took samples of the drinking water at the hotel and took all objects with them for laboratory testing, Andalou reported. A room on the ground floor was also disinfected with chemicals – presumably pesticides for pest control.
The father, mother, six-year-old son and three-year-old daughter, had travelled to Istanbul from their home in the northern German city of Hamburg a week ago.
The family was admitted to hospital on Wednesday with nausea and vomiting, suspected food poisoning, and was later discharged, Anadolu reported.
After their condition deteriorated, the entire family was taken back to hospital during the night. Shortly afterwards, both children died, followed by the mother on Friday.
The father remains in intensive care, and there is no new information about his condition.
The three Hamburg residents were buried on Saturday in Afyonkarahisar in western Turkey.
The new hospital cases involve tourists from Italy and Morocco, but the head of the Istanbul Health Directorate, Abdullah Emre Güner, wrote on X that the two people are in a good condition and will continue to be monitored.
Another tourist who shared a room with the two has been examined for a slow heartbeat. and is in a good condition, Güner said.
GNA