Warning: This article contains details that may be disturbing and triggering to readers.
The murder trial of an Alliston man, accused of killing his ex-wife in what police described as an ‘execution style’ shooting, is underway in a Barrie courtroom.
Ahmet Duzguner, 53, is charged with first-degree murder in the shooting of the mother of his children, Sibel Duzguner, Aug. 26, 2022, outside her home as she prepared to leave for work.
Sibel Duzguner was 38 years old when she was shot five times, execution style while backing her car out of the driveway, the court heard.
It took two years for police to arrest her ex-husband, who is accused of hiring men to stalk then kill Sibel after their marriage ended and he learned Sibel planned to re-marry in the months prior to her death.
Police said a grey 2011-2012 Volkswagen Jetta was captured on surveillance cameras driving up to her home along Kidd Crescent, blocking her car. Provincial police said someone got out of the vehicle and shot Sibel repeatedly from her driver side window.
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The Crown told the court, in its opening remarks, that two vehicles, including the grey Volkswagen and a red Honda Civic, were seen around the home in the days leading up to the shooting. The prosecution revealed Ahmet Duzguner had purchased a red Honda Civic for his daughter about a week prior to Sibel’s death.
The trial’s first witness was a longtime friend who said Sibel told her that Ahmet was following her and knew “everything” that was being said inside the home; including her bedroom.
The witness said the accused disparaged Sibel, and that Sibel should be ashamed and embarrassed she found another husband. The witness said she remembered Ahmet Duzguner telling her he could “just kill Sibel and get rid of her.”
Police said Sibel immigrated to Canada from Türkiye in 2003 and lived with her three children after moving from the Toronto area. Following her death, in Dec. 2023, Sibel’s family in Türkiye issued an emotional plea for help solving her murder followed by a $50,000 reward offered by police.
Eight months later, in May 2024, Ahmet Duzguner was charged with Sibel’s murder. He has remained behind bars and is represented by defence lawyer Deniz Sarikaya.
The prosecution told the court it will play wiretap conversations between Ahmet Duzguner and his daughter, recorded in the days following Sibel’s killing.
The witness testified Monday that Sibel feared she was going to be killed. She told the court that Sibel held her hand the last time they were together, as if she knew she was going to die. Four days later she learned her friend had been shot and killed outside her home. The woman said Sibel was told by Ahmet and his brother to sign her home over to him, leave their children behind, and return to Türkiye. Sibel said she could not leave her kids behind, the witness testified.
The four-week trial, presided over before Justice Joseph Di Luca, is scheduled to continue Tuesday.
