Tourist Turns Vigilante: Ukrainian Man Chases Down Gun-Wielding Thieves, Kills Them in Dramatic Confrontation – But Now Faces 25 Years Behind Bars
- A brazen daylight robbery in Turkey turned deadly when a tourist chased down thieves who had stolen thousands of euros from his car
- The Ukrainian man, Dymitro Chaban, was waiting in his car outside a hotel when two men on a motorbike drove up and smashed his window with a gun
- Chaban gave chase in his SUV, eventually colliding with the thieves and killing them – but has now been jailed for 25 years for their deaths
Shocking CCTV footage shows the terrifying moment a tourist was held up at gunpoint in a daylight robbery in Turkey – and the dramatic confrontation that followed.
Dymitro Chaban was waiting in his car outside a hotel in Alanya, Turkey, when two men on the back of a motorbike drove past his vehicle several times, peering in his windows. The men, still wearing their motorcycle helmets, seemed to discuss their plan before one approached the car’s front window, smashing the glass with the butt of a gun.
The gun-wielding robber screamed and grabbed a bag from the car, containing a staggering £30,700 ($A62,000) in cash. But what the thieves didn’t count on was Chaban’s bravery – or his determination to get his money back.
With the thieves making their getaway on the motorbike, Chaban sprang into action, chasing after them in his SUV. The pursuit ended in tragedy when Chaban collided with the thieves, killing them both at the scene.
Chaban was later sentenced to life in prison for “deliberately killing” the two men, identified as Murat Orhan Gündüz and Elnur Behbulda Gündüz. However, his sentence was reduced to 25 years due to the “extreme provocation” of the event.
In a dramatic court hearing, Chaban claimed he had “lost consciousness” when he saw the gun and had not intended to kill the thieves. “I would not have risked my life; I had no intention of killing,” he said. “I do not have the ability to kill people; it was all beyond my control.”
Meanwhile, a man identified as Yunus Emre C. was sentenced to 10 years in prison for acting as a lookout during the robbery.
The incident comes as a stark reminder of the dangers of traveling abroad, particularly in countries with high crime rates. Just last month, a family of four tragically died in Turkey after a poisonous pesticide used to kill bedbugs leaked into their hotel room.