Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Pushing His Pregnant Wife Off Cliff During Selfie to Claim Insurance Money

A pregnant woman identified as Semra Aysal, 32, tragically lost her life after falling off a cliff while taking a selfie with her husband, Hakan Aysal, 40, at the scenic Butterfly Valley in the Turkish province of Mugla.

During a hearing at the Fethiye High Criminal Court, it was revealed that Semra, who was seven months pregnant, was murdered by her husband in an attempt to claim a life insurance policy he had secretly arranged.

According to court reports, Hakan lured his wife to the cliff under the pretense of taking a selfie, despite knowing she was afraid of heights. Moments later, he pushed her off the edge, sending her plummeting to her death.

Reports shared by The Mirror stated that the couple had spent over three hours at the cliff before the tragic incident occurred. A passerby captured disturbing video footage showing the pair walking toward the edge moments before the fatal fall.

Following the incident, Hakan attempted to claim a £40,000 insurance payout from a policy he had taken out shortly before her death. However, investigators became suspicious when he tried to collect the money just days after her passing.

Further investigations uncovered that Hakan had taken out seven loans in his wife’s name without her knowledge and later lived lavishly after her death. Authorities concluded that the motive behind the crime was financial gain.

Prosecutors charged Hakan with premeditated murder, and the Fethiye High Criminal Court accepted the indictment in 2022. He was later sentenced to a minimum of 30 years in prison before being eligible for parole.

Witnesses described Hakan’s demeanor after the incident as “calm and emotionless”, noting that he did not join search efforts for his wife’s body.

A motorist, Sait Erturk, who was flagged down by Hakan, described him as “carefree”, saying: “I was driving there and when I saw someone was waving at me, and I stopped. Hakan came and said that his wife had fallen down the cliff.

“We immediately got out of the car and started looking for her, but we couldn’t see where she would have landed from where we were. We tried to get closer to the edge for a better look.

“Hakan did not come with us down there. We stayed there until the gendarmerie arrived. Hakan was very carefree and calm. He was not acting like a man whose wife had just fallen off a cliff.”

The convicted murderer is currently serving a life sentence, with the possibility of parole only after 30 years behind bars. However, reports soon emerged after his imprisonment that he was already attempting to secure his release by trying to build a fortune through legal action against his critics.

Despite being behind bars, in 2022 he reportedly filed lawsuits against 200 individuals who had allegedly slandered him online. According to Turkish media, the convicted killer was seeking ₺5,000 (approximately £269) in damages from each person accused of insulting him on social media.